Historically, the place has been home to many Buddhisthermit as well as ancient historical sites. Besham was previously a part of the State of Swat and then Swat District, until the creation of Shangla District on 10 July 1995.
With a mild and generally warm and temperate climate, Besham features a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) under the Köppen climate classification. The average temperature in Besham is 20.7 °C, while the annual precipitation averages 842 mm. Even in the driest months, there is a lot of precipitation. November is the driest month with 18 mm of precipitation, while August, the wettest month, has an average precipitation of 138 mm.
June is the hottest month of the year with an average temperature of 30.6 °C. The coldest month January has an average temperature of 8.9 °C.