Horodnia was first mentioned in historical literature at the beginning of the 17th century. There are different ideas about the origin of its name. A source of local pride comes from three cannons presented by
Peter I for the heroism of the people of Horodnia during the
Swedish invasion in 1709. From 1782 and until the
Revolution of 1917 Horodnia served as a
povit centre. In 1932 the town's population reached 5,000 inhabitants. Until 18 July 2020, Horodnia was the administrative center of
Horodnia Raion. The raion was abolished in July 2020 as part of the
administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Chernihiv Oblast to five. The area of Horodnia Raion was merged into Chernihiv Raion. Horodnia was occupied by Russian forces during the ongoing
Russo-Ukrainian war. Russian forces were reported to have left the town on 1 April 2022. ==Population==