Broadcaster Melvyn Bragg has accused the National Trust of 'bullying' after the charity bought farmland in the Lake District.
Thorneythwaite Farm's private owner put it up for auction in two separate lots, with a guide price £750,000 for the land and £800,000 for the farm and buildings.
The trust bought the land but not the farmhouse and there are concerns about what will happen to the farm which has been part of an agricultural tradition dating back 4,500 years.
Lord Bragg said it was a 'disgraceful purchase' and a 'nasty piece of work', adding that its opening bid of £200,000 above the initial £750,000 guide price put off other potential buyers in a move 'straight out of the Mafia.'
There are also concerns for the livestock on the farm which include a flock of rare 413 Herdwick sheep which is part of the traditional landscape.
'Bullying charity'
In a letter to The Times, Lord Bragg said: "had a billionaire bullied his way into this disgraceful purchase there would have been a deserved outcry.
"If the increasingly arrogant National Trust is there to protect anything of our past surely this is a prime example.
"The National Trust is about to destroy what centuries of working men and women have created.
"It used a shameful manoeuvre to achieve its aim. Who can check this bullying charity?"
The National Trust said it was the best way to secure the landscape's future.
A spokesman for the charity said: "We believe we can look after this land in a way that benefits nature, visitors and the local community."
"We understand some people believe we should also have bought the farm house and continued to manage the land in the same way. However, given our limited funds, we believe that this was the right approach.
"Managing the land is the best way for us to secure the long term future health of this special landscape, given our available resources."
