Sir Richard de Westcote founded a chantry here in 1332 and is now buried with the walls of this 14th century church, his feet are crossed and rest upon a lion and over his suit of chain mail he wears a belted coat.

Over a century ago Binsted village was isolated in comparison with nearby Bentley, and this could be because of its geography, as while Bentley was located on one of the main routes between London and the Coast (now the A31) Binsted lies about three miles away from this same road thus attracting less attention and stayed relatively undiscovered by the traveller.

The village had no mains water until 1935 but mains drainage did not appear for another sixteen years.

Binsted was similar to Bentley in another way in that it also had three pubs and only one remains, The Cedars. The other two were the Kings Arms and the White Hart which have both been converted to private residences, but if one looks closely then can still see the original buildings.

Hop growing was the main industry here and this can be seen by the number of Oasthouses that still remain in the area, most are now private. Binsted like Bentley again is now no longer a truly rural community and most of the inhabitants commute to towns and cities outside the area, many of them go to and from London to work.

The nearest shop to he village is Bentley Stores which is four miles away though most people do their shopping in Alton which is the same distance away.
Binsted also has its own recreation ground and sports pavilion and Binsted Village Fete is one of the annual highlights held on the recreation ground.

The school though still remains and was constructed in 1875 on land that is owned by the Wickham Estate and it is built mainly of stones that come from the nearby River Hill Pit.

Another famous warrior is also buried in the churchyard here. The grave of Field Marshal The Viscount Montgomery can be found a the top end of the graveyard, a large marble stone set in gravel

IMAGES OF BINSTED

The approach to the village showing as Oast House		The Cedars public house
The Bounty		Cottage in front of the church
Church of The Holy Cross		The War memorial

Roman terracotta works of art have been discovered here and can now be seen in the British Museum, there was also a stone coffin found here with a skeleton still inside.

The church of the Holy Cross with its war memorial in the churchyard stands opposite a timbered house with an overhang and the entrance is via the 14th century door.

HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY CROSS

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION by John Owen Smith, Headley Down, Hampshire

There are two ways leading from East Worldham to the scattered hamlets which constitute the parish of Binsted. The first is by the old Saxon track near the church, the other being lower down the hill and along the road past Kingsley old church.

Binsted church, dedicated to the Holy Cross, is one of the largest and most interesting mediaeval churches in the north east of the county, arguably surpassed only by that of Crondall. It served a large parish, much of which was covered by Alice Holt Forest, in which there were small chapels of ease. Yet this big church itself remained a mere chapelry of Alton until 1865.

It stands at the top of a greensand ridge and has the Alton arm of the River Wey just below and to the north. The present church dates from the early part of the 12th century but, as with East Worldham, there could have been an earlier Saxon church on, or near, the site.

From the outside the first impression is of a simple early Norman building to which many additions have been made during the passing centuries, most of these possibly in the first hundred years of the church's existence, indicating a rapid growth in population during the 11th and 12th centuries, when most of the village would attend church services. This may have been the reason for the building of the north and south aisles at a much earlier date than for most churches.

The original entrance to the nave would probably have been at the west end, through the lower section of the tower. The sturdy timber framing in the ground floor of the tower is mediaeval, possibly of the fourteenth century, as is the framework of the slated spire. The upper section is of a later date. At its earliest, the church consisted of the present nave. When the church was extended eastwards, clerestory windows were cut into the east wall above the chancel arch to restore light to the nave.

Most of the windows are Early English, with point headed lancets. The east window, by the artist Capronnier in 1875, has three long lancets, but those in the north and south walls of the chancel are of Norman origin.

Under the chancel arch there is a crypt, now closed in, but the arched entrance to which can clearly be seen on the lower part of the north wall. The crypt is thought to contain the remains of those who were buried near the north wall and displaced when the north chapel was built.

In the north chapel is the tomb of a Crusader, Richard de Westcote - a fine though battered effigy of c.1320 in a contemporary arched recess. The grave of Field Marshal Lord Montgomery of Alamein can be found in the churchyard.
[Source: Some Ancient Churches in North East Hampshire, published by
John Owen Smith 1995 - ISBN 1-873855-11-7]