St Peter's Church is the Gothic brick church in the middle of Old Riga whose spire, topped by a gilded rooster, is the tallest in the old town. First mentioned in 1209, it has lost its tower again and again, to collapse, fire, lightning and war, and the city has rebuilt it every time. A lift takes visitors up to a gallery 72 metres above the streets, with the best view over Riga's rooftops and the Daugava.
St Peter's Church at a glance
- Where: Skārņu iela in the middle of Old Riga, a couple of minutes' walk from Town Hall Square and the House of the Blackheads.
- Built: first mentioned in 1209; the choir dates from 1408–1409 and the nave from the 1470s. The spire was rebuilt after the Second World War, and the rooster went back on top in 1970.
- By: the medieval choir was built under the master builder Johannes Rumeschottel of Rostock; the post-war reconstruction was led by Pēteris Saulītis and Gunārs Zirnis.
- What it is today: a Lutheran church that also hosts exhibitions and concerts, with a lift up the tower. Old Riga, including the church, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Time needed: 30–45 minutes, including the trip up the tower.
Seven roosters and a tower that kept falling
St Peter's appears in the records in 1209, when it survived a city fire because it was built of stone. The present church took shape in the 15th century: the choir in 1408–1409 and, in the 1470s, a three-aisled nave with high vaults. In 1491 an octagonal spire about 136 metres high was added, and in 1523, during the Reformation, the church became Lutheran. The tower's troubles began on 11 March 1666, when it collapsed. Its replacement burned in the great city fire of 1677; a new spire, finished in 1690, was set alight by lightning in 1721, and the tower was rebuilt again by 1746.
On 29 June 1941, as German forces advanced into Riga, artillery fire set the church ablaze and the spire fell. Restoration started in the 1950s, with the main work between 1967 and 1983. The new rooster, a replica of its predecessor and the seventh to stand on the tower, was put in place in 1970. Services resumed in 1991. In 2022 the Latvian parliament passed a law handing the church to a joint body of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia and the German St Peter's congregation, with a large restoration funded mainly by Germany to follow. Parts of the church or tower may close while that work is under way, so check before you go.
What to look for
- The rooster at the top of the spire: gilded, about 158 kilograms, and a copy of the one before it. Roosters on Riga's spires traditionally act as weathervanes.
- The three Baroque portals on the west front, approved by the city council in 1692 and decorated with limestone sculpture; a merchant, Klaus Mistett, paid for them.
- The tower clock. Bells ring on the hour, and the Latvian folk tune 'Rīga dimd' sounds from the tower several times a day.
- The view from the gallery at 72 metres: the Daugava and its bridges, the spires of Riga Cathedral and St John's, the House of the Blackheads and the big hangars of the Central Market.
- Inside, the tall Gothic brick vaults of the choir, built in 1408–1409 and restored after the war.
The glass that did not break
A well-known Riga tradition says that when a tower was finished, the builder threw a glass from the top: the more pieces it broke into, the longer the tower would stand. According to the story, when one of St Peter's spires was completed the glass landed on a cart of straw and stayed whole, and the spire burned soon afterwards. When the spire was rebuilt in Soviet times, the ritual was repeated, and this time the glass smashed. It is a legend, but locals still like to tell it as they look up at the tower.
Tips for your visit
- Go up on a clear day. Late afternoon light falls nicely on the old town and the river, and in summer going early or late helps you avoid waiting for the lift.
- For a photo of the whole spire, step back into the small square behind the church by St John's Church, or look across from the Daugava embankment.
- Combine the visit with a slow walk through the lanes between the church, Town Hall Square and Riga Cathedral, where most of Old Riga's sights are packed together.
Nearby
- Bremen Town Musicians: the bronze donkey, dog, cat and rooster beside the church, a gift from Riga's twin city of Bremen; visitors rub the animals' noses for luck.
- St John's Church: the Gothic church right behind St Peter's, with a stepped brick gable.
- House of the Blackheads and Town Hall Square: the rebuilt guild house with its ornate gable, a couple of minutes' walk away.
- Riga Cathedral: the city's Lutheran cathedral on Dome Square, a few minutes' walk north through the old town.
See Riga with World City Trail
Our Riga scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 3 hours, with about 40 minutes of walking. It includes the Freedom Monument, the Laima Clock and the Latvian National Museum of Art.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Riga.
Play the Riga scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Riga →
Play the outdoor escape game in Riga →
Facts checked in October 2026.