Land Agents in fact and fiction: James Coombs and James Morrison/Caleb Garth in Middlemarch.

The land agent or steward was and still is an important member of rural (and urban) society, occupying an unusual position in-between landlord and tenant, and in many cases possessing an impressive array of skills for the improvement of his (rarely her) emnployer's estates. This was especially true during the 19th century when rural life was affected by significant forces for change, including the construction of canals and railroads, enclosure and drainage schemes and the introduction of agricultural machinery. Here the agent's role in fiction is examined for the first time.