This famous surname is of Norman-French origin, and dates back in England, to the 1066 invasion. The first name holder was one of the original commanders of William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy, and as a result of his unstinting support of the Duke, Robert de Alvers was granted a major estate in Northamptonshire. The surname in any case is locational and derives from one of the villages called "Auvers", either in the district in Normandy known as La Manche, or from "Auvers Le Hammon" in the district of Sarthe, also Normandy. Over the centuries the surname became more anglicised, the original preposition 'de' being fused into the name, to the point where the French original spelling is heavily disguised. The name development includes Ralph de Auvers in the Berkshire County Pipe Rolls of 1205, Geoffrey Dauvers in the Court Rolls of Oxford for 1209 and Ralph de Avers in the Middlesex Court of Fines for the year 1235. The Baronetcy of Davers, from Rougham in the county of Suffolk, became extinct in 1806. The name was also recorded in Ireland, Sir William Davers died in Dublin on the 11th of April 1615. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert de Alvers which was dated 1086 The Domesday Book, Northampton during the reign of King William I The Conqueror 1066-1087 Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.