According to the oldest entries from before the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the gender Quarles is situated in the county of Norfolk in England. It derived its name from the village Quarles on the north coast of said county. T In the early sixteenth century the family branched from Norfolk to Ufford and London and in the early seventeenth century also to North America and “de Republiek” as the Netherlands was called at that time.

The Dutch branch of the family comes from the London based John Quarles (1596-1646/47), who was part of the Court of Merchant Adventurers and as such was living in Delft and Rotterdam. In Rotterdam he married Petronella van Berckel, daughter of the mayor. Their grandson Pieter (1677-1744) married in 1716 to Cornelia Splinter of Loenersloot and had two sons, Willem (1717-1781) and Lodewijk (1719-1781).
Willem was admitted of his nobility in 1751 by Emperor Francis I and obtained in this way the title of (Rijks) baron. He and his descendants called themselves ” Quarles de Quarles”, while the descendants of his brother Louis and his descendants call themselves as distinction “Quarles van Ufford”.
The descendants of the latter became part in 1815 of the Dutch nobility. In 1855 a single branch was authorized to put “Van de Merwede” in front of the name. In 1917 another branch was authorized to put the name. “Twiss” in front of the name.

Sources: Nederlands Adelsboek 1978, volume 69,; Quarlesiana no 26, bulletin of the Foundation “Familie Quarles”.