The first settlers arrived in the hills above Longborough 5,000 years ago, and built the Long Barrow after which the village takes its name. Human bones have been found in a quarry nearby, as well as large prehistoric animals. There was a Romano-British village within the parish to the east of the Fosseway. At the time of the Domesday Book there were three manors in Longborough, the largest of which belonged to the King. They later passed to the powerful Mortimer family. In 1256 two of the original manors were given to Richard, Earl of Cornwall and King of the Romans. Richard's son, Edmund, gave the land to Hailes Abbey, who threatened to dispossess the villagers in favour of sheep.

The smaller manor Banks Fee was given to La Blanck family in return for Knight Service. After the Dissolution the main manor was granted to Thomas Leigh, a former Lord Mayor of London. His daughter-in-law, Elizabeth, provided shelter for Royalists in the Civil War, and lit bonfires to celebrate their victories. The Battle of Stow on the Wold, which ended the first Civil War, started in the parish just below Banks Fee. 

Most of the land was enclosed by the end of the 18th Century. Banks Fee was bought by John Scott, who built the present house (above) in 1753, surrounded by a park and pleasure gardens. By this time the neighbouring parish of Sezincote had been amalgamated with Longborough.

A Congregational Church was built in 1839. The School was founded by members of the Leigh family before 1820, and the present building was erected in 1875. 

The main manor remained in possession of the Leigh family until 1921 when it was sold. Manor Farm, to the north of the church, was built in the 18th Century on the site of the original manor house, and now forms part of the Sezincote Estate.

The Reading Room, now the Village Hall, was built in memory of Frederic Brookes Dugdale, VC.