This study was originally established by Kate Cunningham of New Zealand who, sadly, died in 2023. Her work will now be kept by the Guild as a Legacy Website (see link above)

In 2024 I took over responsibility for current research on the Wellard surname and this can be found at the Guild hosted website shown above.

My name is Henry Mayne and my interest in this surname stems from it being my wife's maiden name.

Research is ongoing and further details will be added as research continues.

There are not really any variants to this surname, though by errors of a clerical or spelling nature some records of Wellards are found under the name of Weller or Willard, or corruptions of either.

Most instances of the surname Wellard in England are found in the south-east corner of England in Kent and East Sussex, where the family is recorded from the mid 16th century onward.

Many online genealogy sites dealing with the origin of surnames suggest Wellard is a variant of the name Willlard (of Germanic origin) or Villiard (of Norman origin), but no clear evidence is found to support either of these theories regarding the Wellard family of Kent.

The earliest indication of an origin in England comes from an entry in the book ‘The History of Deptford’ by J.D. Smith, which includes a statement referring to a Simon Wellard being a knight in the service of Gilbert Magnimot, who had been the personal physician and chaplain to William the Conqueror.  As a reward for his services to William, Magnimot was given the manor of Deptford in Kent and he was made one of eight barons responsible for the defence of  Dover Castle.

Evidence is found of the existence of an early Wellard family through records of those who fought for England at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, which include an archer named William Wellard.

Notable members of the Wellard family include;

1. The Wellard family of Dover held a strong presence in the town over many years. They established themselves as brewers, seafarers and merchants, and became involved in the administration of the town and its harbour, with 2 members of the family serving as the mayor .
2. Captain Thomas Wellard was a notorious pirate, smuggling between France and England. In 1786 in Cornwall, Thomas and his crew, on his ship 'The Happy Go Lucky', were cornered in St. Mounts Bay by coastguard boats and, after he fired on them, he was killed when they raked his ship with grape shot.
3. Arthur William Wellard (1902-1980) played cricket for Somerset and England and was known for his big-hitting.
4. James Howard Wellard (1909-1987) was an author, war correspondent, explorer and historian. 

More details about these individuals can be found in my book 'The History of the Wellard Family', available through my website.

A full family tree is under development for a family first found in the village of Adisham in Kent in the mid 16th century. This is accessible through my website.

The origin of the Wellard family in England is unclear but an indication of the family's ancestral past has been gained by a Y-Chromosome DNA test taken by Russell Wellard, a brother of my wife. His DNA returned a haplogroup of E-M35, showing an ancestral origin of North African Berber. Being fair-skinned this was something of a surprise, but it is the case that some Berber tribes are of a light complexion, sometimes with auburn or blond hair and blue eyes.

Within the general haplogroup of E-M35, Russell's DNA shows a probable link to the Amazigh tribe, a large population of which are found in Morocco.

Berbers were active sailors around the Mediterranean and coastal areas beyond from early times. They were also found in legions of the Roman army. In the 8th century an Amazigh leader from Morocco led an invasion into southern Europe via Spain and Portugal. The invasion went up into France where some of the invaders settled. It would appear possible that it may be through this link that the earliest member of the Wellard family in England held such a DNA ancestry.

Further details are again available in my book.