Besthaim in the Domesday Book (1086)
Besthaim appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, entered under the hundred of Burghshire in Yorkshire. The survey assessed Besthaim at 5 carucates of taxable land.
At the time of the survey, Besthaim supported a recorded population of 9 villagers, 2 smallholders, 1 slave, working 7 ploughs between them.
The survey puts Besthaim’s value at 2 shillings, the same as before the Conquest. Unchanged valuations are relatively rare in the North, where disruption was widespread.
Resources Recorded at Besthaim (1086)
- Mills: 1 mill (valued at 2d)
- Meadow: 10.5 acres
Other Settlements in Burghshire
- Addlethorpe
- Aismunderby
- Aldfield
- Allerton [Mauleverer]
- Arkendale
- Askwith
- Azerley
- Barrowby [Grange]
- Beckwith [House]
- Bestham
- Bewerley
- Bilton
- Birstwith
- Bramley [Grange]
The Meaning of the Name
The origin of the name Besthaim is not securely established from its modern form alone; like many settlement names in the North it likely combines an Old English or Old Norse personal name with a landscape term.
Remarkably, the name has changed little since 1086, when the Domesday scribes wrote it as Besthaim.
Listed Buildings Near Besthaim
Historic England records 5 listed buildings within about a mile of Besthaim. Listing protects structures of special architectural or historic interest, graded I (exceptional), II* (particularly important) and II.
Grade I
- Swinsty Hall - 1.3 km
Grade II*
- Church of St Lawrence - 0.39 km
Grade II
- Ivy Cottage - 0.33 km
- Memorial to John Brerey Approximately 10 Metres East of North-east Corner of Church of St Lawrence - 0.39 km
- Sundial Approximately 10 Metres South of Church of St Lawrence - 0.41 km
Nearby Domesday Settlements
Other places recorded in the 1086 survey within a few miles:
Heritage Around Besthaim
Photographs of churches, listed buildings and monuments in the vicinity, contributed by volunteers to the Geograph project and reused here under a Creative Commons licence.
© Alexander P Kapp · Geograph · CC BY-SA 2.0
© Roger Nunn · Geograph · CC BY-SA 2.0
© Tom Blackwell · Geograph · CC BY-SA 2.0
Images © their respective photographers, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 and reused here with attribution. Photographs depict listed buildings, churches and monuments near this settlement and may show neighbouring villages.
Data derived from the Open Domesday project (opendomesday.org), based on the Domesday Book dataset compiled by Professor J.J.N. Palmer and team. The Domesday Book (1086) is in the public domain.
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