General Lord Robert Manners (c. 1721 – 31 May 1782) was an English soldier and nobleman. He was a son of John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland

John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland

John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland KG was the son of John Manners, 1st Duke of Rutland and his third wife Catherine Wriothesley Noel, daughter of Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden...

 and his second wife, Lucy Sherard.

He purchased an ensign

Ensign (rank)

Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank itself acquired the name....

cy in the Coldstream Guards

Coldstream Guards

Her Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....

 on 26 July 1735, and was promoted lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

 in May 1740. On 22 April 1742, he was promoted captain and lieutenant-colonel in the 1st Foot Guards, and in December 1747, colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

 and aide-de-camp

Aide-de-camp

An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...

 to King George II. Manners was returned as Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for Kingston-upon-Hull in 1747, and kept the seat for the remainder of his life.

In September 1748, he was appointed colonel of the 15th Light Dragoons

Duke of Cumberland's Regiment of Light Dragoons

The Duke of Cumberland's Regiment of Light Dragoons was a cavalry regiment of the British Army raised in 1746 and disbanded in 1749.It was raised by the Duke of Cumberland in 1746, drawing most of its men from the recently disbanded Duke of Kingston's Regiment of Light Horse, and was ranked as the...

, which were shortly thereafter disbanded. On 13 March 1751 he was made colonel of the 36th Regiment of Foot

36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot

The 36th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1701 and amalgamated into The Worcestershire Regiment in 1881...

, and was promoted major-general on 7 February 1757, and lieutenant-general on 7 April 1759. He was transferred to the colonelcy of the 3rd (The Prince of Wales's) Dragoon Guards on 6 September 1765. He was promoted general

General

A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....

 on 25 May 1772 and died on 31 May 1782.
On 1 January 1756 he married Mary Digges (c.1727–1829), by whom he had several children:

• Mary Manners (1756–1834), married on 31 January 1777 William Hamilton Nisbet
  William Hamilton Nisbet
  William Hamilton Nisbet was a British politician.On 31 January 1777, he married Mary Manners, daughter of Lord Robert Manners. They had one child:...
  
   (1747–1822)
• General Robert Manners (1758–1823), mistress, Mary Ann Goodchild (1780–1854) (also known as Mansel) with whom he had 5 children
• John James Manners (1762–1763)
• George Manners (1763–1828), of Bloxholm and Ufford Hall, unmarried
• Lucy Manners (1764–1835), unmarried