Show ContentsMarriault History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Marriault was originally "De La Mare, from the great fief of La Mare, near St. Opportune, in the comune of Autretot, Normandy; where their castle was built upon piles on the margin of the lake still called Grande-mare." 1

One source claims the name was derived from the Old French word "marre," meaning "a ram."

Early Origins of the Marriault family

The surname Marriault was first found in Normandy where "Sire de la Mare is one of the Norman nobles enumerated by Wace at the battle of Hastings; and the family became very numerous both in Normandy and England. Sir William de la Mare, and his lands in the valley of La Mare, are mentioned in a charter of St. Louis, dated 1259; and as many as nine Sires de La Mare (almost all of them bearing different arms) are entered on the roll of "Gentilshommes de la Normandie" given in the Nobiliaire." 1

The ancestor of the English families, Norman de La Mare, lived c. 1030 and Hugo de La Mare occurs in the Breton charter in 1070. This was one of his sons, of whom four went to England at the Conquest. 2

William de Mare was an undertenant in Wiltshire and Herefordshire according to the Domesday Book of 1086. 3

Early History of the Marriault family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Marriault research. Another 302 words (22 lines of text) covering the years 1375, 1383, 1384, 1388, 1391, 1397, 1585, 1610, 1629, 1637, 1653, 1660, 1674, 1680, 1712 and 1738 are included under the topic Early Marriault History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Marriault Spelling Variations

History has changed the spelling of most surnames. During the early development of the French language in the Middle Ages, a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there spelling variations of the name Marriault, some of which include Marre, Marres, Mar, La Marre, La Mare, La Marres, La Mares, La Mar, Maur, Maure, Maures, Maurre, Maurres, More, Mores, Morre, Mars, Maurs, Moure, Mourre, Merre, Mer, Mere and many more.

Early Notables of the Marriault family

Notable amongst the family in this period was Guillaume de la Marre, treasurer of France at Dijon. Thomas Lamer (died 1397), of Dorchester (Dorset) and London was an English politician. He was a Member (MP) of the Parliament of England...
Another 39 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Marriault Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Marriault family

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec, in 1663 there were only 500, 2,000 migrants arrived during the next decade. Early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. 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. Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 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 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported to Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many distinguished contributions have been made by members of this family name Marriault. It has been prominent in the arts, religion, politics and culture in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Marriault were Alice Mare, aged 22; who settled in Barbados in 1635; Andrew Mare, who settled in Virginia in 1663; John Mare, who settled in Virginia in 1651; Mary Mare, who settled in Virginia in 1663.



  1. Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 2 of 3
  2. 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)
  3. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)


Houseofnames.com on Facebook