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![Show Contents]() Nevil History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The vast movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of England of 1066 brought the Nevil family name to the British Isles. They lived in Durham. Their name, however, is a reference to Neuville, Sur Touques of Orne in the canton of Gacey, Normandy. "This family descended from Baldric Teutonicus, who with his brother Wiger came to Normandy c.900 to offer his service to the Duke. From him descend the families Neville, Courcy and others." 1 Early Origins of the Nevil familyThe surname Nevil was first found in Durham where they claim descent from Gilbert de Nevil, the companion in arms of the William the Conqueror who many believe was the Duke's Admiral but there is no mention of him in the Domesday Book. 2 Another early record shows Ranulph de Nevill of Raby, Durham, being summoned to Parliament as a Baron on June 8, 1294. Ralph Neville (died 1244) served as Lord Chancellor of England, Bishop of Chichester and was Archbishop of Canterbury elect from 1231 to 1232. Wargrave in Berkshire was home to another branch of the family. "The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £13. 13. 6½., and in the gift of the lord of the manor and impropriator, Lord Braybrooke, to whose ancestor, Sir Henry Nevill, the Billingbear estates, and the hundred of Wargrave, anciently attached to the see of Winchester, were granted by Edward VI." 3 Another branch of the family was found at Dalton-Piercy in Durham. "In 1370, Henry, Lord Percy, sold this manor to Sir John Nevile, of Raby; and it remained with the descendants of that proprietor until the forfeiture by the family, since which time the lands have been divided." 3 "[Liversedge in the West Riding of Yorkshire] was anciently the property of the Neville family, lords of the manor, of whose mansion, Liversedge Hall, there are still some slight remains." 3 Early History of the Nevil familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Nevil research. Another 259 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1100, 1200, 1364, 1379, 1385, 1388, 1397, 1425, 1426, 1428, 1431, 1461, 1470, 1471, 1615, 1620, 1625, 1631, 1651, 1655, 1661, 1668, 1675, 1676, 1680, 1681, 1685, 1692, 1694, 1697, 1712, 1717 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Nevil History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Nevil Spelling VariationsAnglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Neville, Navelle, Nevile, Nevil, Nevill and others. Early Notables of the Nevil familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was - Richard Neville (1428-1471), who became the 16th Earl of Warwick, through his mother, a countess. He was known as the "Kingmaker" as he played a large role in putting Edward IV on the throne in 1461...
- His younger brother, John Neville, 1st Marquess of Montagu KG (1431-1471) was a major magnate of fifteenth-century England
- Sir Thomas Nevill, 1st Baronet (c. 1625-1712), of Holt in Leicestershire, held a Baronetage of England created on 25 May 1661; Sir Edward Nevill, 1st Baronet (c. 1651-1685) of Grove in Nottinghamshire...
- Sir Christopher Nevile (ca. 1631-1692), of Haddington, Aubourn, Lincolnshire, was an English Member of Parliament, High Sheriff of Lincolnshire for 1680-1681. Henry Neville (1620-1694) was an English...
- John Nevell, Neville, Nevill or Nevil, (died 1697), was an English Vice Admiral from St. Margaret's, Westminster, Middlesex who spent most of his career in the Americas living in Virginia. He died the...
 Migration of the Nevil family to Ireland
Some of the Nevil family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 61 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Nevil migration to the United States | + |
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Nevil or a variant listed above were:
Nevil Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- Richard Nevil, who settled in Virginia in 1650
- Richard Nevil, who landed in Virginia in 1650 4
Nevil Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- Edward Nevil, who landed in Virginia in 1723 4
- Michael Nevil, who arrived in Boston, Massachusetts in 1762 4
- Michael Nevil, who settled in Boston in 1762
| Contemporary Notables of the name Nevil (post 1700) | + |
- Lieutenant-General Sir Gordon Nevil Macready KBE CB CMG DSO MC (1891-1956), 2nd Baronet, British Army officer who served as Assistant chief of the Imperial General Staff during World War II
- John Nevil Maskelyne (1839-1917), English illusionist
- Nevil Shute Norway (1899-1960), better known as Nevil Shute, English novelist and aeronautical engineer who spent his later years in Australia, one of the most popular novelists of the mid-20th century
- Nevil Shute (1899-1960), pen name of Nevil Shute Norway, English-born, Australian novelist and aeronautical engineer
- Nevil Shed (b. 1966), American basketball player, member of the 1966 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament National Champions
- Sir Nevil John Wilfrid Macready (b. 1921), 3rd Baronet
- General Sir Nevil Charles Dowell Brownjohn GBE KCB CMG MC (1897-1973), Quartermaster-General to the Forces
- 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)
- Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- 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)
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Nevil migration to the United States 
England
Ireland
