Greewald is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in
England with the
Norman Conquest of 1066. The Greewald family lived in the place named Grenneville in the barony of St. Denis de Gaste,
Normandy. The family name Greewald was brought to
England after the
Norman Conquest, when William the Conqueror gave his friends and relatives most of the land formerly owned by
Anglo-Saxon aristocrats. The
Normans frequently used the name of their estate in
Normandy as part of their name. The surname Greewald was established by Norman landholders in the county of Buckinghamshire.
Early Origins of the Greewald family
The surname Greewald was first found in
Buckinghamshire where they held a
family seat soon after the
Norman Conquest. They are believed to be from Grenneville in the barony of St. Denis de Gaste in the Cotentin in
Normandy. Accompanying the Conqueror at Hastings in 1066 the family, father William and son Robert, became under-tenants of the Giffards in
Buckinghamshire. Richard, son of Robert, married Isabel, daughter and heiress of Gautier Giffard, Earl of Buckingham, thus inheriting the title which would later become the Duke of Buckingham. Although the Harleian Society claims there is no relationship to the west country Grevilles in Gloucester, a branch which emerged about 1250, we find this most unlikely. The similarity of the Coat of Arms of each of these families is more than conclusive evidence that the Grevilles of Gloucester were directly related to the Grenvilles of
Buckinghamshire, although it must be admitted there was a noble family of Lagravol or Greville in Montfaucon-du-Velay in
Forez also emerging in the 13th century.
Early History of the Greewald family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Greewald research.
Another 311 words (22 lines of text) covering the years 1250, 1267, 1607, 1643, 1628, 1658, 1643, 1658, 1677, 1720, 1699, 1701, 1701 and 1705 are included under the topic Early Greewald History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Greewald Spelling Variations
Endless
spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Greville, Grevill, Graville, Gravill, Gravell, Gravelle, Gravel, Grevil, Grevile, Gravile and many more.
Early Notables of the Greewald family (pre 1700)
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Edward Greville of Milcote; Robert Greville, 2nd
Baron Brooke (1607-1643), an English Civil War Roundhead General, the cousin and adopted son of Fulke Greville, 1st
Baron Brooke, owner of Warwick Castle, Parliament for
Warwickshire (1628), reportedly shot by a...
Another 48 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Greewald Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Greewald family to the New World and Oceana
To escape the political and religious persecution within
England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Greewald or a variant listed above: Ffrancis Grevill, who came to Virginia in 1620; John Grevill, a bonded passenger, who arrived in America in 1740; John Gravell, aged 16, who settled in Jamaica in 1685.