At the time of the Domesday Survey, Binsted was listed as part of the Hundred of Netham as well as the Manor of Alton Westbrook. The village was referred to as "Benested", which means "holding of land". Over the years there have been different variations on the spelling of the name, including Bensted, Benested and Boonsted, Bensted, and Bennsted. The name most likely has its origin from the Saxon word "bin", meaning "heap". Before the Norman Conquest, the village was known as "Binsted Popham" and was held by Egbert of Wessex. The existing parish church was built in approximately 1140 AD. The history of Binsted from the 11th century to the early 19th century is not documented. A likely explanation is that the village remained a "simple agricultural community" and was not involved in any controversial activity, due to its isolation. However, the Alice Holt Forest was an important supplier of timber from the 12th and 18th centuries, and the forest was claimed to have 13,000 trees "fit for ship building" in the early 17th century. Telegraph House, now a private home, was built by the Admiralty in 1825 as a semaphore relay station on the railway line linking London with Plymouth, with the intention to provide a number of key relay stations forming a line of communication between important points. Binsted was recorded in the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales by John Marius Wilson in 1870. Five years later a school was built on land belonging to the Wickham Estate from stones brought from a pit near Semaphore House.
Geography and demographics
Binsted is located in the eastern central part of Hampshire, South East England and is east of Alton, its nearest town. The parish is one of the largest in North East Hampshire and covers an area of around, extending from the edge of Alton to the Surrey border in the east. It also includes the entirety of the Alice Holt Forest. The landscape is dominated by farms and woodland such as Binsted Farm, Wheatley Copse and Sparkfield Wood. The parish contains two hamlets; Wyck and Wheatley, and two villages; Bucks Horn Oak and Holt Pound. The River Wey forms the parish`s northern boundary. According to the 2011 census, the parish of Binsted had a population of 1,817 people. In addition, there are 711 households in the parish with an average size of 2.56 people.
Climate
Due to its location in south central England and its proximity to the sea, the average maximum temperature in January is 7.2 °C with the average minimum being 1.6 °C. The average maximum temperature in July is 21.9 °C, with the average minimum being 12.5 °C. The hamlet gets around 755 millimetres of rain a year, with a minimum of 1 mm of rain reported on 103 days a year.
Notable landmarks
The parish contains a total of 58 Grade II listed buildings, including a Grade II* listed barn, and the Church of the Holy Cross, a Grade I listed building. The church dates from the late 12th century with early 13th and 15th century additions, as well as a substantial restoration in 1863. The building itself consists of stone walls, a tiled roof, and a stone slated porch. The oldest part is the chancel, which dates from the 12th century with 15th century extensions. The north chapel was altered in 1331, and in its churchyard is the grave of famed Second World WarField Marshal Bernard Montgomery. Other listed buildings include Barnfield House – three houses which were once separated all dating from 1550 with 20th century restorations. The house itself has a timber frame with a tiled roof, including a late medieval hall. Mill Court, another Grade II listed building, is a large house dating from the early 19th century with a low pitched roof and yellow brickwork, and became a listed building on 15 August 1985.
