Terce

Also 5 teirs, tairs, 7 tearce. [A variant of TIERCE, now used in a special sense.]

  1.  Obsolete, archaic, or variant form of TIERCE, q.v. in various senses.

  2.  spec. in Sc. Law, A life-rent competent by law to a widow (unless she has accepted some other special provision) of the third of the heritable subjects in which her husband dies infeft, provided that the marriage has endured for a year and a day, or has produced a living child. Cf. DOWER sb.² 1.

1473.  in Laing Charters (1899), 43. The quhilk our teirs extendis ȝerly till viij markis. Ibid. Tairs.

1476.  Acta Auditorum, 19 July. Hir brefe of terce anent ye land of Lethbert.

1568.  Reg. Privy Council Scot., I. 619. Thair subwassellis, ladiis or terce, conjunct fearis, and lyverentaris.

1597.  Skene, De Verb. Sign., s.v. Breve, The brieue of Terce.

1665.  J. Fraser, Polichronicon (S.H.S.), 197. Shee, haveing a tearce of the lordship, was well furnished … with all manner of provision.

1681.  Sc. Acts Chas. II. (1820), VIII. 247/2 (title), Act concerning wives Terces.

1752.  J. Louthian, Form of Process (ed. 2), 286. That Services of Relicts to their Terce pay one Half of special Services.

1868.  Act 31 & 32 Vict., c. 101 § 118. All rights of courtesy and terce competent to the husband or wife of any such creditor.

  b.  attrib. Terce land, the land of which the rent is assigned to a widow’s terce (usu. in pl.).

1552.  Reg. Privy Council Scot., I. 129. Spirituall menis landis, togidder with all waird landis, terce and conjunct fie landis.

1565.  in J. Fraser, Polichronicon (S.H.S.), 152. Item upon her terce lands of Lovat five oxen.

1581.  Reg. Privy Council Scot., III. 409. Hir haill fermes of hir terce landis of Westraw.

  Hence Tercer († tiercear), a widow who has terce.

c. 1575.  Balfour’s Practicks (1754), 336. A Lady tiercear, or conjunct-fear, havand ane tierce or conjunct-fie of ward landis, or blanche landis.

1773.  Erskine, Instit. Laws Scot., II. ix. § 44. The widow [is hence styled[ the tercer.

1808–25.  Jamieson, Tercer, tiercer … a term still commonly used in our counts of law.