The late Duchess of Rutland made her daughter-in-law cry after she said ‘sorry’ that she hadn’t given birth to a son.
The dowager had been disappointed that after the birth of a third girl there was yet to be a male heir.
Frances, the former Duchess of Rutland, told the current duchess: ‘Sorry to hear the news … another girl.’
Emma Manners, 62, who was then the Marchioness of Granby, said she waited for privacy and ‘found a bed I could lie down on and then I cried and cried,’ according to a new book.
She has four daughters and two sons; her first born Violet Garnock, 32, who is now Viscountess Garnock, Lady Alice, 30, Lady Eliza, 28, Charles, 26, the Marquess of Granby and Hugo, 22.
Violet Manners told the Cheltenham Literature Festival that her mother felt mounting pressure to have a son was part of her role as duchess.
In remarks reported by the Times, she said: ‘All three of us girls came first, so yes my grandmother was slightly on tenterhooks when Eliza arrived.’
It comes after the duchess, 61, revealed she was in she’s in remission following a shock diagnosis of stage two breast cancer.
Emma admitted she has at times felt ‘guilty’ following the diagnosis and ‘blamed herself’ after having ten pregnancies, five children and taking up smoking in her 40s.
Her mother-in-law, the dowager duchess, died last year at the age of 86 at Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire.
She was known as ‘Frosty’ and was often aloof from the family and left just £5,000 of her £5.6million fortune to her daughter and granddaughters.
While a majority was inherited by her eldest grandson and heir, Charles Manners.
The Viscountess was in Cheltenham to discuss Eleanor Doughty’s book, Heirs and Graces.
The book details how when Charles was born seven cannons were fired from Belvoir Castle to celebrate his long-awaited arrival.
For many, the late Duchess of Rutland will be remembered for her association with one of Britain’s biggest high-society scandals, which saw her mother, Margaret, Duchess of Argyll branded the ‘Dirty Duchess’.
The embittered divorce of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll in 1963 was one of the most turbulent court cases of the 20th century, fraught with forgery, bribery, theft and scandal surrounding explicit photographs.
By contrast, Frances, Duchess of Rutland, adhered unwaveringly to the aristocratic code and accomplished successes.
This included mastering seven languages, training Arabian horses and chairing the local Conservative Party committee in later life.
