de la Tremoille

Recorded in a wide range of spellings which include: Tremellier, Tremolieres, de la Tremoille, Tremollet, Tremouille, Tremoulet, and Tremblot, this is a surname of French origins, although in various forms also recorded in England. It would seem that the likely origin is topographical, and as such derives from the Latin word "tremulare," used in France in ancient times to describe the aspen tree, which was considered to "tremble". Hence the surname described somebody who lived by such a tree or trees. This origin also certainly applied to the first known recording in any country being that of William Tremillin in the landowners register known as the Hundred Rolls for the county of Staffordshire, England, in 1273. In 1880 Canon Charles Bardsley claimed that the surname as Trimble and Tremble derived from Turnbull, but we have serious doubts that this is an accurate analysis. The third possibility is from the pre 7th century Olde English personal name "Trumbeort", meaning "strong and bold" of which the first known example of the spelling as a surname is that of Alan Tumbald of the Manor of Wakefield, in the county of Yorkshire in the year 1316. What we do know from early surviving registers and charters is that Charles de la Tremoille married Charlotte, Princess of Orange Nassau, and Countess of Derby (in England) at Thouars, Deux-Sevres, France, on March 1st 1599, whilst Mary Tremellier was christened at St Dunstans in the East, Stepney, city of London, on January 24th 1637. Other recordings showing the surname development include: Marie Charliotte de Tremouille, who married Bernhard, Duke of Saxe, at Paris, France, on June 10th 1662, and Jeanne Tremoulieres, christened at Bouillac, Tarn-et-Garonne, also France on March 31st 1666. Joel Tremoult was a Huguenot refugree recorded at St Dunstans, Stepney, on December 13th 1722, whilst Clude Tremollet was a witness at Maurice-de-Jourdan, St. Ain, France, on December 116th 1811. Over the centuries, surnames have continued to "develop," often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.