The city of Horsens was founded approximately 1200 years ago. A large amount of findings bear witness to the fact, that people have lived by Horsens Fjord already in the Stone Age, and archaeologists have found remains of houses, workshops and a grave site from the Viking period.

A small beautiful city
In  1154 the Arab geografer Al-Idrisis mentioned Horsens as “a small beautiful town“. The city is still beautiful and the history of the region is long, eventful and exciting. Today's street grid was formed in the Middle Ages around the year 1300. The original buildings were transformed into a true medieval city, compared to European standards. From this period, there is information about a medieval municipal law, the city’s own seal and the first town hall, which was situated on the market square next to Vor Frelsers Kirke (Our Saviour’s Church). The church was built around 1225.

In the beginning of the 14th century the king, Erik Menved, had a castle erected by Bygholm. Borgbanken, which one still can see the remains of, is artificially constructed. Several large brick buildings were situated on top of the mound. The king’s bailiff lived in the castle and was in charge of collecting taxes for the king.

Time line
10,000 B.C. Stone Age, the first settlements by “Horsens”
800 A.C. (approx.)  The city of Horsens is founded
1154 Horsens is put on the world map
1225 Our Saviour’s Church is erected
1300 Erik Menved’s castle is constructed
1681 The birth of Vitus Bering, died in 1741
1780 Court of the Russian prince
1830 The first iron foundry in Jutland
At the end of the 1800’s, significant industrial growth
1853 Horsens State Prison (1853 – 2006)

Vitus Bering’s journey started in Horsens
Denmark’s greatest explorer Vitus Bering was born in Horsens in 1681. At the beginning of the 1700’s, the Russian czar hired him to head two of the biggest scientific expeditions at that time - where he discovered the strait between Siberia and Alaska. This strait bears his name today.He also mapped the west coast of North America after which Alaska became part of the Russian Empire. Vitus Bering died in 1741 on the Bering Island. 250 years later archaeologists from Russia and Horsens found his earthly remains, which were re-buried on the island.

A rich architectural inheritance
In the 1700’s, trade with agricultural products was dominated by large scaled merchants selling goods from their own estates. Their wealth was a huge benefit to the city. The merchants erected new buildings and large half-timbered houses with beautiful facades were built. In the center of Horsens you can see Lichtenbergs Gaard, one of the most beautiful buildings from the baroque period, built in 1744 by the Councillor of State Gerhard de Lichtenberg. 

The Abbey Church (Klosterkirken) was burial place for the merchants, who donated inventory and put up epitaphs for themselves and their families. Thus the church vitnes the wealth from those days. A Russian court, consisting of four princes and and princesses, lived at Torvet 2 – 4 between 1780 and 1807. They were also buried in Klosterkirken.

The domination of industry
Jutland’s first iron foundry was founded in Horsens in 1830, and Horsens got a new industrial harbour and railway. At the end of the 1800’s, Horsens grew into one of Denmark’s biggest and most important industrial cities. The tobacco industry was very important to the city, but during the depression Horsens suffered and there wasn’t any progress until the 1970’s. In the former Electricity and Gas Works you get a living insight in the development of industry decade by decade and at Denmark's Industrial Museum you can find several interesting exhibitions about the industry in Horsens.