 As a landlord , Coke was a firm believer in the right and moral obligation of a landowner to improve the quality of life of those living on his estates . The roles of landlord and tenant were clearly set out by the late 18th century ; the landlord was to provide fields , roads and buildings , while the tenant would provide the seed , implements and manual labour . Coke 's estate included 54 farms when he inherited it , with excellent farm output . There were , however , significant debts as a result of his uncle 's work on Holkham Hall , with the interest alone being £ 4 @,@ 000 a year . He had some difficulties dealing with the people employed before he inherited the estates , and when the steward Ralph Cauldwell , appointed by Coke 's uncle , retired in 1782 , Coke failed to replace him until 1816 . This replacement was Francis Blaikie , a Scottish man who had previously been employed as estate steward for Lord Chesterfield . Blaikie paid close attention to where farms were doing badly or could do better , but often struggled to deal with Coke . Coke lacked financial sense in matters other than the agricultural , on one occasion selling all his land near Manchester . It wasn 't until 20 years later that Blaikie became aware of this , after receiving a query from the new owners about the mineral rights . Blaikie travelled to Manchester to meet the solicitor who had handled the sale , finding not only poorly drafted conveyances but that all the sold land had been rich in coal . 
