The town Górowo Iławeckie is located on the terrain of the ancient original-Prussian Natangia. Once the Teutonic Order of Knights came in this region and because of their expansionary politics the original Prussians experienced great suffering. The inhabitants of old Prussia didn’t found the 'state' (in the sense of the word today,) but lived together in tribal communities. As they hadn’t enough people to consolidate for a fight against the German knights of the order this form of 'state' was also a reason for their destruction. For a short period of time the natangian tribal chief Herkus Monte, under whose leadership the original Prussians were victorious against the Teutonic Order of Knights could achieve some success at the beginning. During the revolt 1240 he could penetrate to “Ziemia Chełmińska”. Although the original Prussians haven’t been already existed since decades, still numerous traces testify their existence, which you can find for instance in the nomenclature. Many names of villages in this region have the ending “-awki” e.g. Worławki, Katławki, which comes from the original Prussian word “lauks”, which means field. The ending “-kajm” what means “village” still appears quite often, too – for instance in Weskajmy or Pudlikajmy.
Also you still can find the old protection rampart from those days in the region of Górowo Iławeckie.
Heinrich de Muro, the commander of Balga on The 5th of February 1335, founded the town of Górowo Iławeckie. In the village's documents, a certain Herman and a certain Albert are mentioned as the first Sołtys. Sołtys were the representatives of the farmers. At the beginning the town still had the name “Landstrasse” (“land road”), which changed to “Landsberg” (“land mountain”). Over a long period of time Górowo Iławeckie was a federal town, which is to explain by the numerous fights of the Teutonic Order of Knights. Once knights from different parts of Europe fought under the flag of the order. As these fights were bounded to high expenditures the order became poor and had to give their towns and villages as a pledge to the knights. That’s how it happened that 1482 Landsberg fell into the hands of a certain Nikilis Taubenheim. In 1535 the town got a new lord, called Friedrich von Waldburg, who preserved the town Landsberg together with the villages Wildenhoff and Kanditten thanks his success during the war against the Poles. After his grandson Fabian von Waldburg died, his wife Helena Dorothea married Otto von Schwerin, the highest president of the Prussian duchy. His grandson Friedrich Wilhelm let build a palace as his ancestral seat in Wildenhoff and married Charlotte von der Heyden. Still you can look at the coat of arms of both families in the Protestant church in Górowo Iławeckie. The fortune of Wildenhoff stayed in the dynasty “von Schwerin” till the WWII. During its reign the town experienced the process of witch-hunting. A certain woman called “Eglersche” from Augam was said to make a spell because she was in contact with the devil. She was tortured that long, that she confessed everything. Finally the trial decided the death penalty, cut off her head and burned her body.
Whereas its whole history over decades Górowo Iławeckie had to make oftener the experience of defeats than rosy times. A lot of times the town burned and it also wasn’t spared cholera, typhus and plague. Especially in 1710 a lot of people died because of the plague and the corps were buried on the so-called mountain of the plague, where now the local Museum of Gas Production stands.
From 1719 to 1779 Górowo Iławeckie was a garrison town, in which the companies of riflemen stayed. The clock at the town hall, which was built on their request, is the only memory of the troops.
Further the war of Napoleon, under which the town suffered a lot, was a negative time for Górowo Iławeckie. With the marching in of the troops also hunger and disease come to the town, which caused a lot of casualties. On the 17th of February 1807 Napoleon Bonaparte stayed in the local parsonage. In “Preussisch Eylau”, close to Górowo Iławeckie happened the bloodiest battle of the whole era.
In the second part of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century the town started to get on well. The progress of civilisation was more and more noticeable. Especially the beginning of the 20th century brought a lot of fundamental improvements of civilisation for Górowo Iławeckie. The rail connection has worked since 1898 and from 1908 the local gas works was used. Besides 1910 the town got water pipes and since 1924 Górowo Iławckie has been provided for electricity for what 1928 the self-connection department was built.
As the Nazis had built theirs barracks and prison camp in the neighbouring Kamińsk, Górowo Iławeckie was involved quickly in military disputes during the WWII
The last train with German inhabitants left on the 1st of February 1945 from the town. After Górowo Iławeckie was definitely beaten by the Soviet Army on the 7th of February 1945, the representatives of the polish administration took the town from the Soviet control.
From than on Landsberg was called Górowo Iławeckie
The town started to live a new life. The inhabitants came from different regions of Poland and from Vilnius. In 1947 a huge number of the Ukrainian population was resettled by the action “Vistula” to Górowo Iławeckie.