Barrau family
French noble family from Rouergue, historically rooted in Carcenac in present-day Aveyron.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
The de Barrau family is a French family of Rouergue, a historic province now largely corresponding to the department of Aveyron. Its documented lineage begins with Firmin Barrau, a sixteenth-century notary associated with Salmiech and Carcenac. Although references and local traditions suggest earlier bearers of the name, the surviving evidence does not establish a continuous genealogy before the sixteenth century. The family’s rise was closely connected to marriage alliances with established landowning and noble families of Rouergue. During the second half of the sixteenth century, Firmin Barrau’s descendants married into the de Méjanès family. In 1611, a further alliance with the de Faramond family connected the Barraus to an old knightly lineage. These marriages helped transform the family’s social position from that of prosperous local officeholders into that of provincial landowners claiming noble status. In the following generations, family members acquired or inherited interests in seigneuries and adopted the titles and forms of address associated with the rural nobility. This advancement was not uncontested. In 1666, during Louis XIV’s investigation of noble status, Guion Barrau of Carcenac was convicted of usurping nobility and fined. Despite the judgment, he and his descendants continued to be described in contemporary records as noble or noblemen. In 1699, Guion obtained a formal maintenance of nobility from the intendant of Montauban, but the proof relied on a fabricated genealogical connection to the separate de Barrau de Muratel family. Additional maintenances were granted in 1701 and 1716. Later genealogical research has distinguished the Carcenac family from the de Barrau de Muratel lines and treated the earlier claims with caution. The family remained active in the social and political life of the region during the eighteenth century. Pierre Firmin de Barrau de Caplongue participated in preparing the cahier de doléances of the nobility of the Rodez and Millau bailiwicks in 1789. The family’s château was looted and burned in 1793, and a father and son from the family were summoned before the Revolutionary Tribunal in 1794. Other family members were involved in counter-revolutionary activity during the Revolution, including the 1792 killing of revolutionaries attributed to a member of the family. After the Revolution, members of the family became local notables in Aveyron. Several were historians, most prominently Hippolyte de Barrau, who proposed the creation of the Société des lettres, sciences et arts de l’Aveyron in 1836 and became its first president. Another family member participated as a botanist in the scientific exploration of Algeria. The family also retained strong Catholic and royalist commitments through the nineteenth century and into the early twentieth century. Eugène de Barrau undertook a confidential mission for the Count of Chambord in 1852, while Jean de Barrau served on the steering committee of the Camelots du Roi and as private secretary to the Duke of Orléans in 1914. The family experienced severe losses during the First World War: four of six young Barrau men were reported to have died in the fighting. Its historical importance is primarily regional rather than commercial. The family has left archival, genealogical, political, religious, and cultural traces throughout Aveyron, especially around Carcenac and Salmiech. It should not be confused with other families bearing the Barrau name, including the de Barrau de Muratel families.
History
The de Barrau family is associated with central Rouergue, particularly Carcenac and Salmiech in present-day Aveyron. The first securely documented ancestor in the family’s continuous genealogy is Firmin Barrau, a notary who made his will in 1557. Earlier medieval documents mention people named Barraus in the area, including a witness connected with Carcenac in the thirteenth century, but the evidence is insufficient to connect those individuals to the later noble family. The family’s social ascent occurred through property, officeholding, and marriage. Firmin Barrau’s descendants formed alliances with the de Méjanès family and, in 1611, with the de Faramond family, an established knightly lineage. These marriages gave the family access to the networks of Rouergue’s old landed nobility. Later heirs married into families including de Flavin and de Solages, while some branches allied with bourgeois families that possessed land or seigneurial rights. Guion Barrau, who married Anne de Vedelly in 1656, became associated with part of the seigneury of Trémouilles. The possession of a seigneury gave him social standing and income, although land ownership no longer automatically conferred nobility. During the 1666 royal investigation of noble claims, Guion was convicted of usurping nobility and fined 600 livres. Nevertheless, family members continued to use noble qualifications, served in the provincial nobility’s military levies, and paid the noble capitation tax in 1695. In 1699, Guion received a maintenance of nobility from the intendant of Montauban. The supporting genealogy falsely attached him to the separate de Barrau de Muratel family. Further decisions in 1701 and 1716 maintained the status of descendants on related documentary claims. Modern analysis distinguishes the Carcenac line from the Muratel families and regards the supposed earlier connection as unproven or fabricated. The family’s history therefore illustrates both genuine social advancement through alliances and the disputed documentary practices used by some provincial families to establish noble status under the ancien régime. The eighteenth century brought continued consolidation of family property and regional connections. Marriages linked the family to the de Faramond, de Solages, Dablanc, de Morlhon, and other houses. Through the de Solages alliance, the family extended its relationships into the Albigeois. In 1789, Pierre Firmin de Barrau de Caplongue helped draft the grievance statement of the nobility of the Rodez and Millau bailiwicks. The Revolution then brought direct violence and political danger: the family château was looted and burned in 1793, and a Barrau father and son were summoned before the Revolutionary Tribunal in 1794. A member identified as de Barrau was also associated with the shooting of revolutionaries in 1792. After 1789, the family’s identity shifted from ancien-régime nobility toward provincial notability and historical influence. Several members became historians or antiquarian writers. Hippolyte de Barrau was central to the formation of the Société des lettres, sciences et arts de l’Aveyron in 1836 and served as its inaugural president. A separate family member worked as a botanist on the Commission for the Scientific Exploration of Algeria. Political commitments remained predominantly Catholic, legitimist, and royalist from the Revolution through the First World War. Eugène de Barrau conducted a confidential mission for the Count of Chambord in 1852, and Jean de Barrau was associated with the Camelots du Roi and the Duke of Orléans in 1914. The First World War caused particularly heavy losses among the younger men of the family. Its surviving legacy is visible in Aveyron’s archives, local history, learned societies, and genealogical records.
- 1914
Jean de Barrau enters royalist political circles
[1]Jean de Barrau served on the steering committee of the Camelots du Roi and as private secretary to the Duke of Orléans.
- 1836
Creation of an Aveyron learned society
[1]Hippolyte de Barrau proposed the Société des lettres, sciences et arts de l’Aveyron and became its first president.
- 1793
Destruction of the family château
[1]The family château was looted and burned during the French Revolution.
- 1789
Participation in the Estates-General grievance process
[1]Pierre Firmin de Barrau de Caplongue helped prepare the cahier de doléances of the nobility of the Rodez and Millau bailiwicks.
- 1699
Maintenance of noble status
[1]An intendant granted Guion de Barrau a maintenance of nobility based on genealogical evidence later judged to have confused his line with the de Barrau de Muratel family.
- 1666
Conviction for usurpation of nobility
[1]Guion Barrau of Carcenac was fined during Louis XIV’s investigation of noble status.
- 1611
Alliance with the de Faramond family
[1]A marriage with Marie de Faramond connected the Barrau line to an old knightly family of Rouergue.
- 1557
First securely documented lineage
[1]Firmin Barrau, a notary associated with Salmiech, made a will that provides the earliest proven point in the family’s continuous genealogy.
First World War losses
[1]Four of six young Barrau men were reported to have died during the fighting of the First World War.
Products and positioning
A regional French noble family and historical lineage, rather than a commercial brand.
Controversies
1699
Disputed genealogical proof of nobility
The maintenance of nobility granted to Guion de Barrau relied on a forged baptismal record that improperly linked the Carcenac family to the de Barrau de Muratel lineage.
1666
Conviction for usurpation of nobility
Guion Barrau was convicted during the royal review of noble claims and fined for claiming noble status without sufficient proof.
Brand decisions
1852
Confidential royalist missionOtherBackground
Eugène de Barrau acted within the legitimist political networks that continued after the French Revolution.
Action taken
He carried out a confidential mission for the Count of Chambord.
Aftermath
The episode reflects the family’s continuing Catholic and royalist orientation in the nineteenth century.
1836
Propose creation of the Société des lettres, sciences et arts de l’AveyronOtherBackground
Hippolyte de Barrau sought to create a learned society devoted to the letters, sciences, and arts of Aveyron.
Action taken
He proposed the society and became its first president.
Aftermath
The family remained represented in the society, which became part of the family’s continuing regional cultural legacy.
Sources1 sources
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