The cathedral is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Latvia, and is featured in or the subject of paintings, photographs and television travelogues.

The church is commonly called the Dome Cathedral, a pleonasm as the word 'Dome' comes from the German Dom meaning 'cathedral'.

The church was built near the River Daugava in 1211 by Livonian Bishop Albert of Riga, who came from Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany.

The organ of the Riga Cathedral was built by E.F. Walcker & Sons of Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in 1882–83,[2] and was inaugurated on 31 January 1884.

[3] A tape of Latvian composer Lūcija Garūta playing the organ for a cantata during World War II captured the sound of battle nearby.