Town Fortification Horn

The oldest known documented mention of Horn ("Hornarun") dates back to the mid-11th century. This refers to the church settlement that emerged in the early 11th century in the vicinity of the fortified church of St. Stephan. Around 1150, the Counts of Poigen established a castle town with a triangular square on the opposite side of the Taffa river.

In 1282, the settlement was first referred to as a city. The city walls were built before 1304. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the city fortifications were significantly expanded. The former city castle was converted into the present-day palace in 1539 by Hans von Puchheim. In 1591, the district court was added. The city tower dates from 1594.

In the late 16th century, the city developed into a center of the Reformation. The Horner Bund, founded in 1608, was an alliance of the seceding Protestant nobles against the Catholic sovereign Matthias. The most significant representative of the Counter-Reformation for Horn was Count Ferdinand Kurz. He was succeeded in 1659 by his son-in-law Count von Sprinzenstein, and from 1679 by the related Counts Hoyos. From 1822, the city was owned by the Counts Hoyos-Sprinzenstein, who are still in possession of the palace.

The city wall of Horn largely runs around the three-sided main square and is mostly preserved, although many parts of the fortification are integrated into the courtyards of the houses. The three gates that led into the city were demolished in the 19th century. The palace, as the former castle, was the eastern point of fortification.