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Devereaux History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Devereaux History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The ancestors of the Devereaux family brought their name to England in the wave of migration after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in Herefordshire. This family was originally from Evreux, in Eure, Normandy, and it is from the local form of this place-name, D'Evreux, literally translating as "from Evreux." They claim descent from "the sovereign house of Normandy, deriving from Robert Count of Evereux, Archbishop of Rouen, son of Richard I of Normandy." 1 2

Early Origins of the Devereaux family

The surname Devereaux was first found in Herefordshire where Roger D'Evreux and his brother were listed in the Domesday Book of 1086. It was there that he married the sister of Walter de Lacy of Hereford. His widow, Helewysa gave lands to Gloucester Abbey and bore a son named Robert de Evrois. By 1165, there were two branches of the family in Hereford. 1

"Amongst the principal Normans who accompanied the Conqueror, and participated in the triumph and spoil of Hastings, was Walter de Evereux, of Rosmar, in Normandy, who obtained, with other considerable grants, the Lordships of Salisbury and Ambresbery, which (having devised his hereditary possessions and Earldoms to Walter, his eldest son,) he bequeathed to his younger son, Edward de Evereux, thenceforward designated of Salisbury. This potent noble, who possessed, at the General Survey, lordships in the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Surrey, Hants, Middlesex, Hereford, Buckingham, and Wilts, bore the royal Standard at the battle of Brennevill, and eminently distinguished himself. His only son, Walter de Evereux, founded the Monastery of Bradenstoke, wherein, in his old age, he became a canon." 3

Sir John Devereux second Lord Devereux (d. 1393), "belonged to a family which takes its name, according to Dugdale, from the town of Evreux in Normandy. It is found in English annals so early as 1140. Sir John Devereux was the son of Sir Walter DeveDevereux, and grandson of William, summoned as Baron in 1298. He was one of the English knights who apparently accompanied Du Guesclin into Spain in 1366 to dethrone Don Pedro." 4

It was in Wiltshire that the Deverells permanently took root, and there they lived close upon four hundred and fifty years, and gave their name to a nest of adjacent hamlets, Kingston-Deverill, Longbridge Deverill, Monckton Deverill, Brixton Deverill and Hill Deverill, clustered along the little river Wiley; to Mount-Deverill, and Hussey-Deverill." 5

The name Deverill is not uncommon to fiction. In particular, Edward Deverill was featured in Agatha Christie's Poirot story "Evil under the Sun," and the fictional Deverill Hall in Hampshire, in the village of King's Deverill which is prominently noted in The Mating Season, a novel by P. G. Wodehouse.

Early History of the Devereaux family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Devereaux research. Another 58 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1315, 1339, 1362, 1367, 1372, 1374, 1376, 1383, 1411, 1431, 1449, 1451, 1459, 1463, 1485, 1489, 1501, 1550, 1558, 1566, 1578, 1591, 1601, 1614, 1617, 1621, 1624, 1646, 1658, 1660, 1676 and 1683 are included under the topic Early Devereaux History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Devereaux Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Devereaux, Deverall, Deverell, Deverill, Devreux and many more.

Early Notables of the Devereaux family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was William Devereux of Bodenham (c. 1315-1367), High Sheriff of Herefordshire (1362-1372); Sir Walter Devereux of Bodenham (c. 1339-1383), High Sheriff of Herefordshire (1374-1376); Walter Devereux (1411-1459) was Lord Chancellor of Ireland from 1449 to about 1451; Walter Devereux (son of Walter Devereux), jure uxoris 7th Baron Ferrers of Chartley (c.1431-1485), was a minor member of the English peerage, a loyal supporter of the Yorkist cause during the Wars of the Roses, was killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field and his son, John Devereux, 8th Baron Ferrers of Chartley (1463-1501)...
Another 97 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Devereaux Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Devereaux Ranking

In the United States, the name Devereaux is the 12,651^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Devereaux family to Ireland

Some of the Devereaux family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 44 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Devereaux migration to the United States +

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Devereaux name or one of its variants:

Devereaux Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Richard Devereaux, who landed in New York, NY in 1817 7
George, James, John, Nicholas, Patrick, Devereaux, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1840
James Devereaux, who arrived in Harford County, Maryland in 1854 7

Devereaux migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Devereaux Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

William Devereaux, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
William Devereaux, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Edey Devereaux, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
Elizab Devereaux, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Mary Devereaux, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750

Devereaux migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Devereaux Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Devereaux, (Devneaun, Devereaux), (b. 1777), aged 25, Irish soldier who was convicted in Cork, Ireland for lif for being an Irish rebel , transported aboard the "Atlas" on 30th May 1802, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Bridget Devereaux, aged 23, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1860 aboard the ship "Grand Trianon"

Contemporary Notables of the name Devereaux (post 1700) +

Yvette Devereaux, American violinist, conductor and director
Jackie Devereaux, American screenwriter, newspaper editor, television and radio reporter
Mike Devereaux (b. 1963), American former Major League Baseball outfielder
Michael Devereaux, American Democratic Party politician, Isabella County Prosecuting Attorney, 1879-80; Mayor of Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, 1890-92, 1896-98, 1907-08; Candidate for Michigan State Board of Education, 1894 9
Kearn J. P. Devereaux, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Hampshire, 1952 9
James R. Devereaux, American politician, Member of Michigan state constitutional commission 9th District, 1873 9
James P. S. Devereaux, American Republican politician, Member, Committee on Permanent Organization, Republican National Convention, 1960 9
James P. Devereaux, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Michigan 8th District, 1910 9
James J. Devereaux, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Massachusetts, 1944 9
Henry Devereaux, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Schoharie County, 1828 9
... (Another 12 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Devereaux family +

HMS Hood

Mr. Albert Devereaux (b. 1916), Canadian Ordinary Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Ferryland, Newfoundland, Canada, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 10

The Devereaux Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtutis comes invidia
Motto Translation: Envy is the companion of virtue.

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 3 of 3
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm