About the Church
The Cathedral of St James in Riga (Rīgas Svētā Jēkaba katedrāle) is the principal Roman Catholic church in Latvia, standing in the Old Town of Riga; it is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Riga and the residence of the archbishop. It is one of four churches of old Riga that arose in the Middle Ages.
Construction began in the early 13th century, and the church was consecrated around 1225. Its red-brick masonry reflects the early Gothic style, with Romanesque features still surviving. Above the building rises a tall spire, about 91 metres high, with a pyramidal spired roof; it is crowned not by a cross but by weathervanes – a rare and distinctive detail.
Over the centuries the church changed hands several times: in the 16th century it belonged to the first Latvian Lutheran congregation, and in 1582, under the Polish king Stephen Báthory, it passed back to the Catholics. Since 1923 St James's Church has been the Catholic cathedral of Latvia.
Today the cathedral is a centre of Catholic spiritual life for Riga and the whole of Latvia – the archdiocese's most important celebrations are held here, and the historic building remains one of the most prominent symbols of Riga's Old Town.
Construction began in the early 13th century, and the church was consecrated around 1225. Its red-brick masonry reflects the early Gothic style, with Romanesque features still surviving. Above the building rises a tall spire, about 91 metres high, with a pyramidal spired roof; it is crowned not by a cross but by weathervanes – a rare and distinctive detail.
Over the centuries the church changed hands several times: in the 16th century it belonged to the first Latvian Lutheran congregation, and in 1582, under the Polish king Stephen Báthory, it passed back to the Catholics. Since 1923 St James's Church has been the Catholic cathedral of Latvia.
Today the cathedral is a centre of Catholic spiritual life for Riga and the whole of Latvia – the archdiocese's most important celebrations are held here, and the historic building remains one of the most prominent symbols of Riga's Old Town.