In 1203, the first St. The church of St. Jacob is said to have been built of wood by order of the Liv chief of Turaida, Kaupo. Unfortunately, it burnt down in the great fire of Riga in 1215. The next St. The next (stone) church of St. Jacob was built at the end of the Romanesque period. The church of St. Jacob is mentioned for the first time in documents, but the exact year of its construction is unknown. At the end of 1999, the men’s choir “Tēvzeme” came up with an initiative to restore St. Jacob’s Church to celebrate the 800th anniversary of Riga. The bell in the tower of St Jacob’s Church was rung. On 21 June 2001, the bell was consecrated by the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church, Cardinal Janis Pujats, and raised into the tower.

For people with reduced mobility (or pushchairs), access is via the side door on the right-hand side of the main entrance. Help to enter the church with the bell button, otherwise the side doors are closed. The bell button is located on the wall to the left of the door, within reach. It is possible to move around quite permanently, but for safety reasons (church staff are not trained in how to communicate or deal with people with functional etc. disabilities) we recommend that you go with an assistant. Double doors open wide, easy access, no thresholds or steps. A curved ramp (without handrails) is built into the interior to reach the open-type lift. The lift takes you down to the level of the main hall, where services and other events are held. At the end of the hall there are 2 screens which can be used to broadcast subtitles, sign language, etc. The main information about the church, its history and events is located in the entrance hall, where people with reduced mobility are not allowed. Church representatives offer assistance but admitted that they are not trained and lack awareness of different groups with different spectrum disabilities.