There is archaeological evidence of human activity in Zeals as far back as neolithic times. The village borders the western edge of Salisbury Plain, and is from Stonehenge. There are bowl barrows on Mappledine Hill in the south east corner of the parish, and early prehistoric activity at Pen Pits to the north which were quarried since Roman times for greensandquerns for hand grinding corn. In 1086 the Domesday Book recorded that the area of Zeals consisted of two estates: Lower Zeals and Higher Zeals. Estimates suggest a population of around 40–50 at Lower Zeals and 85–95 at Higher Zeals at that time. Zeals House is a Grade I listedcountry house dating from the 14th century, with many later additions. It was owned by the Chafyn family, later the Chafyn-Groves, from the 15th century until the mid 20th century; in 1897 the family were benefactors of Chafyn Grove School near Salisbury. Zeals has a set of Tudor revival-style almshouses that were built in 1865 for William Chafyn-Grove. Together with the parish hall, they are Grade II listed.
Whitesheet Church of England Primary Academy, near the church in Zeals village, serves the parish and surrounding area. Since 2003 it has operated on two sites, with younger children attending the school at Kilmington and older children at Zeals. The village has a pub, the Bell and Crown.
Zeals airfield
North of Zeals village, next to the village of Stourton and the Stourhead estate, is the site of the former RAF Zeals, also known as HMS Hummingbird and RNAS Zeals. The airfield operated between May 1942 and June 1946, and during this short time was used by the Royal Air Force, the United States Army Air Forces and the Royal Navy. Until August 1943 RAF Fighter Command used it as a fighter airfield for Hurricanes and Spitfires. The station was transferred in August 1943 to the USAAF whose initial plan was to use the airfield to maintain C-47 Skytrain transport aircraft. However, the damp conditions prevented heavy loads so P-47 Thunderboltfighter aircraft were flown from Zeals instead. From March 1944 the airfield reverted to the RAF who posted Mosquito there to intercept incoming German bombers. Following D-Day the RAF used the airfield for glider training in preparation for action against Japan, and in April 1945 the airfield was transferred to the Royal Navy, and was commissioned HMS Heron using the airfield for aircraft carrier training. The airfield closed on 1 January 1946, although the RN stayed until June 1946 when it was returned to farmland. As of 2006, the control tower, now a private house, remains on Bells Lane in Zeals. A memorial stands at nearby Beech Knoll in Stourton to mark the site where an American military plane crashed on 10 July 1944, killing all of its crew. The plane had taken off from Zeals airfield to return to Lincolnshire after two weeks of glider training and flew into some cloud-covered beech trees on the knoll.
