Although we cannot be certain of the origins of this name, many people with the surname believe that it originated in France. The surname BAYARD is quite common in France and BYARD may well be the anglicised version.
If this is the case then we may claim to have a particularly famous ancestor in Chevalier de Bayard, (1473-1524) who was a French knight renowned for his valour and chivalry. His family motto was 'sans peur et sans reproche'.
According Trevor Byard in 'The Pains and Pleasures of Our Pioneers' there are four derivations of the surname:
BAYARD- a Huguenot (French Protestant) surname. The first 'a' was dropped when the refugees arrived in Britain.
BYARD- of Dutch origin. Literal translation, 'bell ringer'.
BYARD-old English. Literally a dweller at or by an enclosure or yard.
BYARD-A leather strap crossing the breast, used by men to drag wagons in coal mines.
Researching the BYARD family tree has identified many interesting and occasionally notorious Byards. Perhaps the most interesting is Sir Thomas Byard who was a naval captain and who commanded the Victory (later Nelson's flagship) towards the end of the 18th C. He was involved at the Battle of the Nile, (August 1st. to 2nd., 1798) being the commander of a squadron of five ships.
A Captain's Class destroyer escort, HMS Byard saw action on Atlantic convoy duties during WW2.
Another 'famous' Byard was Phillip Thomas Byard Clayton ('Tubby' Clayton) of Toc H fame who was a chaplain to the British Forces in WW1. Tubby Clayton was, as his name implies, descended from Sir Thomas Byard.
For further details about Sir Thomas Byard and Tubby Clayton click on the names.
____________________________ We have been able to trace our line in the BYARD tree from about 1650 and its origins in the Wirksworth area of Derbyshire. Before this time there were several settlements of BYARDs, e.g. at Mancetter, Ashby, London and Ripley, but we have been unable to link the Wirksworth branch with any of these with any confidence.
This family tree research has been helped by contributions from many sources, in particular by Kath Benny, Kath Hawkins, Alberta Fitch, Pamela Byard, John Byard, Malcolm D. Byard, Sue Sylke, Katherine Farrell, Libby Duffield, Maureen Byard,Mike Bush and Edna James.
The Pains and Pleasures of Our Pioneers, by Trevor Byard, published by Regal Publications, Tasmania, 1990.
Mention must also be made of the tremendous value of the work of John Palmer and colleagues in the compilation of the Wirksworth WWW site, a veritable gold mine of information for anyone lucky enough to have ancestors from that area.