 The district was formed as the District of Basingstoke on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the borough of Basingstoke, Basingstoke Rural District and Kingsclere and Whitchurch Rural District.On 20 January 1978, following the grant of borough status, the district became the Borough of Basingstoke and Deane.The council claims that the new title included the names of the largest town and smallest village in the borough, although there are eight civil parishes with populations smaller than Deane.