Horben originally belonged to the
tithe district of
Wittnau parish, which was ruled the
Abbey of Saint Gall in Switzerland. Feudal landlords associated with the abbey, the "Lords of Horwen", are mentioned in 12th century documents and were reported as having a castle on "Horben Mountain". The feudal rights over the village were held by various landlords before being acquired by the city of Freiburg in 1582. However the village was not incorporated into the city then, or since. In 1525 Horben consisted of 24 farms in scattered locations, three houses of widows and an orphanage. Chief activities during the Middle Ages were
mining and
forestry. During the
Thirty Years' War Horben was pillaged by marauding soldiers. It was reported that not one head of cattle was left in Horben in 1645. The village was later re-settled by farmers from the Bohrer Valley. In January 1814, during the
wars against Napoleon, Russian troops passed through Horben on their way from Freiburg to the
Wiese valley. During the 1848
Baden Revolution Horben was the base of operations of revolutionaries
Franz Sigel and
Gustav Struve. The village expanded in the early 20th century, and 1930 saw the construction of the valley station of the
Schauinslandbahn gondola lift system. Horben was untouched by bombing during
World War II, though nearby Freiburg was devastated, and at the end of the war the area was occupied by French troops. After the war many
refugees found a new home in the village. Since then development pressure from Freiburg increased and in Horben village, Bohrer and Langackern large areas have had new houses built. ==Landmarks==