The name "Fleckney" (and alternative spellings of "Flecknie", "Fleckineye" and "Flechenie") may be Saxon or Scandinavian in origin. Although it seems Fleckney existed before the Norman Conquests as the pre-Norman spelling of the village name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, not a lot is known prior to this. The motto that was adopted is that of Lord King, Earl Lovelace, the last Lord of the Manor which translates as "Labour is its own reward".

During Edward the Confessor's reign (1042-1066), land at Fleckney and nearby Wistow and Kibworth was held by Edwin Alferd. After the Battle of Hastings, lands were distributed among the friends of the conqueror, especially Robert Dispensator, Steward to King William 1, who at the time of the Domesday Survey held much of Fleckney.

From Robert Dispensator, some land passed to the line of Robert Marmiom, until the late 13th century when it was taken over by a sub-tenant, John Hastings, whose family was associated with Fleckney until 1541, when it was sold to Thomas Harvey.

Between 1640 and 1680, much of the country was deeply devided, particularly on the issues of politics and religion. The Civil War, the execution of Charlies 1, the rule of Cromwell and the return of Charles II, all took place at this time. In fact, Cromwell's men are thought to have come through Fleckney in pursuit of the Royalist forces after the Battle of Naseby where it is thought that one horseman lost his sword. It remained buried for the next three hundred years until brought to light by a villager on his walk through the meadows.

Until the 19th century, Fleckney was a small agricultural community. The majority of the villagers worked on the land, whilst a few specialised in crafts conected with farming. In the middle ages, Fleckney was one of the smallest agricultural settlements in the area with an adult population in 1381 of seventy-one. But by 1670, it had grown to around 41 households.

In the 19th century, the village developed an industrial base related to hoisery industries and expanded, especially after 1870 when over a 30 year period the population more than doubled from 658 in 1871 to 1516 in 1901, probably influenced by improved health, the fall in the death rate and the development of industry.

Following a busy period of heavy clay brick industry, when the current village duck pond was a clay pit, by the middle of the 19th century, hoisery had taken over as a major village industry.

In 1851, seven men were reported to be brickmakers while 141 people were engaged in the hoisery trade. The development of this new industry was particularly influenced by a young Scotsman, Robert Walker, who came and purchased an existing hoisery concern in 1859. Fleckney became home of some of the first hand-built frames and some years later of the well-known firm of "Wolsey Ltd" which had its beginnings in the village and, amongst other things, once made socks for Scott's Antartic Expedition.

Another company which developed a wider reputation as a table water manufacturer was "Furnivals Mineral Works" which was founded in 1897 by Ned (Needham) Furnival and his brother Charlie and based on the discovery of a local spring. It was - and generally still is - referred to as "The Pop Shop" factory. Furnival's "Pop" and the lorries delivering it were a common sight around the Fleckney area until the late 1980s.

Motorised public transport came to Fleckney after World War 1 when Mr John Conquest Peberdy adapted his coal-lorry to take passengers. In 1921, he started a regular run to the station and later extended his route to Leicester. As traffic increased, the gates barring the roads became a hindrance and after the 1940s most of them had been removed to be replaced by cattle-grids. Ernest Bird, who had been blind since childhood, was a well-known local figure as he stood by the gates to open them for passing motorists who rewarded him for his services.

Even though the population declinded between 1911 and 1961 to a population of 1495, post-war housing development and other building work took place. Since 1970, major expansion occured towards an estimated target of around 5,000 residents. In 1991, the population stood at 4,295.

Much of Fleckney's industry today is confined to a purpose built estate on its southern edge, where there is hoisery and various other trades, such as plastics and engineering. In the village centre, there are a number of shops, such as a large supermarket, butchers, newsagents, post office, chemist, various take-away food shops, pubs and social clubs. There are also a number of community facilities, such as library centre, sports centre, village hall, churches, medical centres and dentist.

Despite its increasing industrial and modern housing development, Fleckney still currently manages to retain something of its rural character and farming and house riding is still a feature around the village.

Fleckney is now generally an established village with a comparatively good range of transport, recreation and community facilities in comparison with other villages and of its size. It is located within the District of Harborough, in the County of Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom, roughly 9 miles from the City of Leicester and the town of Market Harborough. In 1991, the population was 4,295 (2167 men, 2128 women with 24.1% children, 64.9% adults and 11% senior citizens).