Frances Helen Manners, Duchess of Rutland (née Sweeny; 19 June 1937 – 21 January 2024) was a British peeress and socialite.
Frances Helen Sweeny was born on 19 June 1937 at Beaumont House, a nursing home in Marylebone Lane, London, to American amateur golfer, socialite and businessman Charles Francis Sweeny and his wife, Scottish debutante Margaret Whigham.
[1] On 15 May 1958, Sweeny married Charles Manners, 10th Duke of Rutland, considered one of Britain's most eligible bachelors, at Caxton Hall.
This, coupled with the embarrassment Frances felt over the press attention her mother's divorce was receiving, led to a two-decade rift.
[1] As chatelaine of the 350-room Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire, Frances oversaw the revitalization of the gardens which had been neglected since World War II.