Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland
| Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland | |
|---|---|
The 6th Earl of Rutland
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| Spouse(s) | Frances Knyvet Cecily Tufton |
| Issue | |
| Noble family | Manners |
| Father | John Manners, 4th Earl of Rutland |
| Mother | Elizabeth Charlton |
| Born | 1578 |
| Died | 17 December 1632 Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire |
| Buried | 20 February 1633 Bottesford, Leicestershire |
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.
Francis Manners was the second son of John Manners, 4th Earl of Rutland, and Elizabeth Charlton (died 1595), the daughter of Francis Charlton of Apley Castle, Shropshire.
In 1598, he went abroad, traveling through France, Germany, and Italy, probably in the company of the former school teacher Robert Dalllington and Inigo Jones. On his return to England he took part, along with his older brother Roger and their younger brother George, in the 1601 rebellion of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, and was imprisoned in the Poultry Counter. He was fined a thousand marks and committed to the custody of his uncle Roger at Enfield. Sir Robert Cecil, however, obtained a remission of the fine, and thus the affair cost little either to him or his brother George. As soon. as he was free he wrote a penitent letter to his uncle Sir John Manners of Haddon. In November 1601, he became a member of the Inner Temple.
On 28 June 1603 Francis Manners travelled with his brother to Denmark to present the Order of the Garter to Christian IV, accompanied by 'picture maker' Inigo Jones among others. He was prominent at the court of James I, and was created a Knight of the Bath on 4 January 1605 at the same time as Prince Charles. On 26 June 1612 he succeeded Roger as the 6th earl of Rutland, and was made lord-lieutenant of Lincolnshire on 15 July of that year. On 7 August he entertained James I at Belvoir, and the king repeated the visit five times in after years. He held the offices of constable of Nottingham Castle and keeper of Sherwood Forest from October 1612 until April 1620, and carried the target or shield in the funeral procession of Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales.
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