Legault History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

The name Legault has a long French heritage that first began in the northern region of Normandy. The name is derived from when the family lived in Normandy.

Early Origins of the Legault family

The surname Legault was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where the family held a family seat from early times.

Anne Gaultier de la Ferrière reaffirmed her family's title of nobility in 1726 at Saint-Cyr. The branch of la Ferrière received the title of hereditary knight by letters in 1810, and the title was confirmed in 1865. Simon Gaultier, squire, lord of les Tournières, lived in 1420. Jean, lord of Lespinguerie, had from Clémence Champion, Pierre, cited in the bann of 1543, also including Jacques, Michel, lord of la Chesnaie, Pierre who married in 1621 Madelaine de Malherbe, Charles, lord of le Ferrière. Michel, grandson of Charles, was lord de Carville who had with Jeanne Lechartier Pierre-Jean-Michel, lord and patron of Carville, from whom came Jean-Jacques-François, lieutenant of marshals of France in Vire, who had Jacques-Alexandre, shot in Caen during the Revolution; Léonard-Louis-Gabriel, who served under Frotté and was killed near Tinchebray; Ange-Maurice who married in 1811 Louise-Charlotte of Verdun. 1

René Gaultier, born in 1634, son of Pierre, travelled from Varennes, France to the New World in the 17th century. He married Marie Boucher, daughter of Pierre and Jeanne (née Crevier), at Trois-Rivières, Quebec on 26th September 1667. 2

Early History of the Legault family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Legault research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1481, 1573, 1606, 1625, 1629, 1631, 1634, 1636, 1668, 1672, 1686, 1858 and 1942 are included under the topic Early Legault History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Legault Spelling Variations

Most surnames have experienced slight spelling changes. A son may not chose to spell his name the same way that his father did. Many were errors, many deliberate. During the early development of the French language, a person usually gave his version, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Prefixes or suffixes varied. They were optional as they passed through the centuries, or were adopted by different branches to signify either a political or religious adherence. Hence, there a many spelling variations of the name Legault, including Gaultier, Gault, Legault, Legaultier and others.

Early Notables of the Legault family

Notable amongst the family in this period was Philippe Gaultier de Comporté, soldier, seigneur, commissary of the King's warehouses, provost of the Marshalsea, naval commissary. He was the son of Philippe Gaultier, Sieur de Rinault, and of Gillette de Veron, who married Marie Bazire in 1672. René Gaultier de Varennes, officer in the Carignan-Salières regiment, seigneur, was the Governor of Trois-Rivières in 1668. Huges Guéru, also known as Gaultier-Garguille...
Another 69 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Legault Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Legault World Ranking

In the United States, the name Legault is the 9,219^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3 However, in Canada, the name Legault is ranked the 215^th most popular surname with an estimated 18,149 people with that name. 4 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Legault is the 101^st popular surname. 5

Legault migration to the United States +

France finally gave land incentives for 2,000 migrants during the 1700s. Early marriage was encouraged in New France, and youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries, leaving French names scattered across the continent. The search for the Northwest passage continued. Migration from France to New France or Quebec, as it was now more popularly called, continued until 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In the treaty of Utrecht, the Acadians were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Legault were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Legault were

Legault Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Noël Legault, born in 1674, son of Roch Legault and of Marie Galion, d'Ervillac, in the bishopric of Cornouailles, married in Montréal, in 1698

Legault Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Royal Legault, aged 24, who immigrated to America, in 1922
Archie Legault, aged 29, who immigrated to the United States, in 1924
Rena Legault, aged 24, who immigrated to the United States, in 1924
Rene Legault, aged 24, who landed in America, in 1924

Legault migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Legault Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

Francois Legault, aged 39, who settled in Montreal, Canada, in 1904
Josephine Legault, aged 46, who immigrated to Montreal, Canada, in 1909
Alice Legault, aged 15, who immigrated to Montreal, Canada, in 1909
Camille Legault, aged 49, who settled in Montreal, Canada, in 1909
August Legault, aged 21, who immigrated to Montreal, Canada, in 1914
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Legault (post 1700) +

François Legault (b. 1957), Canadian politician, former member of the National Assembly of Quebec, Premier of Quebec (2018-)
Lance LeGault (1935-2012), American actor, best known for his role as Colonel Roderick Decker in the 1980s American television series The A-Team
Thierry Legault (b. 1962), French amateur astronomer, specializing in astrophotography, eponym of the 19458 Legault, an asteroid of the main belt discovered in 1998
Théodore Legault (1886-1935), Canadian politician who represented Sturgeon Falls in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1926 to 1929 and later for Nipissing from 1934 until his death in 1935
Suzanne Legault, Information Commissioner of Canada from June 2010 to February 2018
Paul Legault (b. 1985), Canadian poet, born in Ottawa, Ontario, and raised in Tennessee
Kyle Patrick Legault (b. 1985), Canadian speedway rider
Diane Legault (b. 1956), French-Canadian dentist and politician who was the member of the National Assembly for Chambly in Quebec
Léonard Hilarion Joseph Legault OC (b. 1935), Canadian diplomat, High Commissioner for Canada to Nigeria and Sierra Leone (1977-1979)
Claude Legault (b. 1963), French-Canadian three-time Gémeaux Award winning actor, known for 7 Days (2010), Minuit, le soir (2005) and 19-2 (2011)
... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Hozier, Charles D, and Antoine Bachelin-Delforenne. État présent De La Noblesse française (1883-1887): Contenant Le Distionnaire De La Noblesse Contemporaine Et Larmorial général De France, Dapres Les Manuscrits De Ch. D Hozier. Librairie Des Bibliophiles, 1884. Print.
Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
"The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec