Farley Chamberlayne is a small rural village and former parish 5 miles W of the centre of Winchester. It is now part of the parish of Hursley, in the City of Winchester district of the county. The church of St John occupies a lonely site, accompanied only by a farmhouse, on high ground in the chalk downs. It is a flint church with tiled roofs, consisting of a nave and chancel in one with no chancel arch, a weatherboarded W bell turret with a pyramid roof, and a S porch. The only Romanesque feature is the S doorway.

In 1086 the manor of Farley Chamberlayne was held by Herbert FitzRemy, and in 1066 in 2 holdings by Alwine and Wulfwine and by Northmann. It was assessed at 1 hide in 1086. In 1167 the manor was in the hands of a member of the Chamberlain family and at the beginning of the 13thc. land in Farley was held by Geoffrey Chamberlain from Ingram de Preaux. His son Robert Chamberlain was recorded as holding land in Farley because he was Chamberlain to the king (King John - 1199-1216). Geoffrey had previously granted the lands in Farley to William de la Berton, while the Chamberlains held the overlordship until 1394, meanwhile the Bertons retained the lordship of the manor until the early 14thc.

The nave and chancel of the church date from the early to mid 12thc. There is 14thc. rebuilding to the W, including the bell turret, and 18thc. windows have been inserted in the E chancel wall and the lateral nave walls.

The church is interesting in that it does not appear to have undergone any Victorian restoration beyond fitting gas lighting, which perhaps explains the survival of the 18thc. fenestration. The 1984 List Description remarks that the gas were still in use at that date; they have now been converted to electricity, but their chains remain. It is unfortunate that one of the unusual label stops has been obscured: surely the notice board could have been more sympathetically positioned. The VCH dates the doorway c.1160, which seems about right.