The Duke of Rutland | |
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![]() The 11th Duke in 2015 | |
Tenure | 4 January 1999 – present |
Predecessor | Charles Manners, 10th Duke of Rutland |
Born | David Charles Robert Manners 8 May 1959 |
Nationality | British |
Residence | Belvoir Castle |
Spouse(s) | |
Issue | Lady Violet Manners Lady Alice Manners Lady Eliza Manners Charles Manners, Marquess of Granby Lord Hugo Manners |
Heir | Charles Manners, Marquess of Granby |
Parents | Charles Manners, 10th Duke of Rutland Frances Sweeny |
David Charles Robert Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland (born 8 May 1959), is a British hereditary peer and landowner.
Rutland is the elder son of the 10th Duke of Rutland by his second wife, the former Frances Sweeny. He was educated at Stanbridge Earls School, near Romsey in Hampshire, which has since closed. He succeeded his father in the titles on 4 January 1999. [1]
He has a younger brother, Lord Edward Manners, a sister, Lady Teresa Manners, and a half-sister, Lady Charlotte Manners. [1]
Rutland's ancestral home is Belvoir Castle in the northern part of Leicestershire. The Sunday Times Rich List 2013 estimated his personal fortune at £125 million, but he had to sell a painting to keep Belvoir Castle maintained. [2]
The Duke was a high-profile supporter of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) and has hosted fundraising events at Belvoir Castle. He has stood in six House of Lords by-elections from 2005 to 2016.
In the summer of 2005, Rutland bought the Manners Arms Country Hotel and Restaurant in Knipton near Grantham, which had been built for the 6th Duke of Rutland as a hunting lodge during the 1880s. The Duchess took a leading part in the renovation work they carried out on the property. [3]
Rutland married Emma Watkins, daughter of a Welsh farmer from Knighton, Powys, on 6 June 1992 at Belvoir Castle. They separated in 2012. [4] The couple have five children:[ citation needed ]
The Duchess runs the commercial activities of Belvoir Castle, including shooting parties, weddings and a range of furniture. [5]
In 2016 the Duke was banned from driving for a year after amassing 24 points on his licence. The Duke was caught speeding twice in Nottinghamshire, once in North Yorkshire and again in Derbyshire in an eight-month period. He was also ordered to pay £3,025 in fines and costs. The Duke did not appear at the hearing. [6]
In July 2018 the Duke came under scrutiny for advertising positions for actors to perform unpaid at Belvoir Castle. [7] Performers' union Equity criticised the advertisement, saying it was "unacceptable" to ask actors to work unpaid; the advertisement was later removed. [8]
In October 2023 the Duke was widely criticised for burning a significant amount of moorland on his land surrounding Sheffield. The incident caused a major local air pollution incident and created calls for the burning of moors for grouse shooting to be outlawed. [9] The Mayor of South Yorkshire, Oliver Coppard, described the incident as: "a moment of real anger and concern". The Duke "expressed his regret that so many fires had been set on the day in question and that lots of smoke had drifted across Sheffield", but did not attend or send a representative to the investigatory event organised for the following year. [10]
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Belvoir Castle is a faux historic castle and stately home in Leicestershire, England, situated 6 mi (10 km) west of the town of Grantham and 10 mi (16 km) northeast of Melton Mowbray. A castle was first built on the site immediately after the Norman Conquest of 1066 and has since been rebuilt at least three times. The final building is a grade I listed mock castle, dating from the early 19th century. It is the seat of David Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland, whose direct male ancestor inherited it in 1508. The traditional burial place of the Manners family was in the parish church of St Mary the Virgin, Bottesford, situated 3 mi (5 km) to the north of the Castle, but since 1825 they have been buried in the ducal mausoleum built next to the Castle in that year, to which their ancient monuments were moved. It remains the private property of the Duke of Rutland but is open to the general public.
Duke of Rutland is a title in the Peerage of England, named after Rutland, a county in the East Midlands of England. Earldoms named after Rutland have been created three times; the ninth earl of the third creation was made duke in 1703, in whose family's line the title continues. The heir apparent to the dukedom has the privilege of using the courtesy title of Marquess of Granby.
John James Robert Manners, 7th Duke of Rutland,, known as Lord John Manners before 1888, was a British statesman.
Lieutenant-General John Manners, Marquess of Granby was a British Army officer, politician and nobleman. The eldest son of John Manners, 3rd Duke of Rutland, as he did not outlive his father and inherit the dukedom, Manners was known by his father's subsidiary title, Marquess of Granby. He served in the military during the Jacobite rising of 1745 and the Seven Years' War, being subsequently rewarded with the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Forces. Manners was popular with the troops who served under him and many British pubs are still named after him today.
Thomas Manners, 1st Earl of Rutland, 12th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG, of Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire, was created Earl of Rutland by King Henry VIII in 1525.
Henry Manners, 2nd Earl of Rutland, 13th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG was an English nobleman.
Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland, KG (1578–1632) was an English nobleman. Despite a brief imprisonment for his involvement in the Essex Rebellion of 1601, he became prominent at the court of James I. He lived at Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire. In 1618 three women, the "Witches of Belvoir", were accused of witchcraft for having allegedly caused the deaths of his two young sons.
Charles Cecil John Manners, 6th Duke of Rutland KG, styled Marquess of Granby before 1857, was an English Conservative politician.
Roger Manners, 5th Earl of Rutland was the eldest surviving son of John Manners, 4th Earl of Rutland and his wife, Elizabeth nee Charleton. He travelled across Europe, took part in military campaigns led by the Earl of Essex, and was a participant of Essex's rebellion against Queen Elizabeth I. He was favoured by James I, and honoured by his contemporaries as a man of great intelligence and talent. He enjoyed the friendship of some of the most prominent writers and artists of the Elizabethan age and Jacobean age. In 1603 he led an Embassy to Denmark, homeland of James' Queen Anne of Denmark.
John Manners, 1st Duke of Rutland and 9th Earl of Rutland was a British MP, and Whig politician. His divorce from his first wife caused much comment, partly because it was thought to have political implications.
John Henry Manners, 5th Duke of Rutland, styled Lord Roos from 1778–79 and Marquess of Granby from 1779–87, was a British aristocrat and landowner, as well as an owner and breeder of thoroughbred racehorses. He succeeded to his father's titles at age 9 and consequently held his dukedom for nearly 70 years.
Charles John Robert Manners, 10th Duke of Rutland,, styled Marquess of Granby until 1940, was a British peer and landowner.
Marion Margaret Violet Manners, Duchess of Rutland was a British artist and noblewoman. A granddaughter of the 24th Earl of Crawford, she married Henry Manners in 1882. She was styled the Marchioness of Granby from 1888 to 1906, when Manners succeeded as Duke of Rutland. She had five children, including John Manners, the 9th Duke of Rutland and the socialite Lady Diana Cooper.
Rachel Emma Manners, Duchess of Rutland is a British noblewoman and podcaster. She is the daughter of a farmer from Wales and married David Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland in 1992. She separated from him in September 2012.
Lady Alice Louisa Lilly Manners is an English columnist, fashion model and socialite.
Elizabeth Manners, Duchess of Rutland was an English aristocrat.
Kathleen Manners, Duchess of Rutland was an English aristocrat and the wife of John Manners, 9th Duke of Rutland.
Frances Helen Manners, Duchess of Rutland was a British peeress and socialite. The wife of Charles Manners, 10th Duke of Rutland, following his death in 1999, she was known as the Dowager Duchess of Rutland.
Catherine Manners, Duchess of Rutland, formerly Catherine Wriothesley Noel, was an English noblewoman. She was the third wife of John Manners, 1st Duke of Rutland, and the mother of the second duke. She was known as Lady Roos between 1673 and 1679, and the Countess of Rutland between 1679 and 1703.
Lucy Manners, Duchess of Rutland, was a British heiress who married John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland.