marquis n.

"act of marching;" 1580s, "a measured and uniform walk; a regular advance of a body of persons in which they keep time with each other," from march (v.) or else from French marche (n.), from marcher (v.). As "an advance from one halting place to another," also the distance so covered, from 1590s.

The musical sense of "strongly rhythmic composition" is attested from c. 1600, from the earlier meaning "rhythmic drumbeat for marching" (1570s). The earliest sense of the word in English is "footprint, track" (early 15c.), from a sense in Old French. Transferred sense of "forward motion" (as in march of progress, etc.) is from 1620s.

German title equivalent to count or earl, originally (from the time of Charlemagne) "military governor of a border province," but the office soon became hereditary in the Holy Roman Empire, 1550s, from Middle Dutch marcgrave (Dutch markgraaf), literally "count of the border," from Old High German marcgravo; second element from graf "count, earl" (Old High German gravo, gravjo), according to Boutkan a designation of rank that developed in Franconian, probably based on Medieval Latin -gravius, from Greek grapheus "scribe." For first element see mark (n.1). Equivalent of marquis. His wife was a margravine.