The Great Mewstone off the coast is home to cliff-nesting seabirds

The trust has raised �1.1m to buy the 56 hectares of coastal land which has been out of bounds since the navy began gunnery training there in 1940.

The site, in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty near Plymouth, is an important location for seabirds and is home to the endangered cirl bunting.

The trust thanked supporters who raised �350,000 towards the purchase.

Natural state

Mark Harold, National Trust regional director, said: "We are thrilled and delighted that the public have supported our fundraising campaign to save this stunning piece of the south Devon coast.

"The level of support from both local and national people has been tremendous."

The National Trust is hoping to complete the purchase in the summer when work will start on restoring it to its natural state.

The navy, which stopped gunnery training at Wembury in 1975, has removed a number of big guns and more than 100 buildings on the site.