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St. James Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral located at 804 Ninth Avenue in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Seattle and the seat of its archbishop, currently Paul D. Etienne. The cathedral is named for St. James the Greater, patron saint of the archdiocese, and is the third church in the territory presently known as the Archdiocese of Seattle to bear the name. The need for a cathedral in Seattle arose in 1903 when Edward O'Dea, bishop of what was then known as the Diocese of Nesqually (later spelled "Nisqually"), elected to move the Episcopal see from Vancouver, Washington, to Seattle. Construction began in 1905. The cathedral was dedicated in 1907. In 1916, the cathedral underwent major renovations as a result of the collapse of its dome; other significant renovations were completed in 1950 and 1994. The cathedral, rectory, and site were designated city landmarks in 1984.

The Diocese of Nesqually was established in Vancouver, Washington, on May 31, 1850, by Pope Pius IX. The new diocese's territory was carved from the former Diocese of Walla Walla, which had been abandoned and its territory administered from Oregon City in the wake of the Whitman massacre. Augustin Magloire Blanchet, the first bishop of the new diocese, dedicated a cathedral in honor of Saints James and Augustine within Fort Vancouver on January 23, 1851. Blanchet's successor, Aegidius Junger, set out to build a new St. James Cathedral in Vancouver. This building, which was completed in 1885, served as the cathedral for eighteen years and remains a Catholic church to the present day. Junger's successor, Edward O'Dea, realized that Vancouver's importance as an economic and population center was waning and at the urging of Reverend Francis X. Prefontaine, a priest in rapidly growing Seattle, O'Dea moved the episcopal see to Seattle in 1903, and immediately laid plans to build a new cathedral. O'Dea purchased the current cathedral site in 1903; planning began in 1904, and construction began in early 1905. The laying of the cornerstone of the cathedral took place on November 12, 1905, in the presence of more than five thousand people. It was said to be the largest religious gathering in Seattle up to that time. While the cathedral was under construction, a small temporary structure, St. Edward's Chapel, served as the pro cathedral for Bishop O'Dea. It was designed by Seattle architect James Stephen and was located on the cathedral block, at the corner of Terry Avenue and Columbia Street. The Diocese of Nisqually was officially renamed the Diocese of Seattle on September 11, 1907, and the cathedral was dedicated on December 22 of that year. On February 2, 1916, the 60 foot dome that crowned the cathedral collapsed under the weight of heavy snow accumulation. The dome was never rebuilt, and when the cathedral reopened on March 18, 1917, the interior had changed dramatically. Another major renovation took place in 1950, marking the centennial of the diocese. In 1984, the Seattle City Council designated the cathedral, rectory, and grounds as a city landmark. In 1994, the cathedral underwent its most recent major restoration and renovation, which sought to incorporate changes brought about by the Second Vatican Council. The liturgical design consultant for the renovation was Father Richard S. Vosko, a priest of the Diocese of Albany who has overseen the redesign and renovation of numerous churches and cathedrals around the country. These changes included moving the altar from its original location at the east end of the cathedral to the crossing at the center of the building. The renovation also included the installation of an oculus and skylight above the new altar, where the dome had been. As part of the 1994 renovation, relics of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini were sealed beneath the altar; Cabrini had worshiped at the cathedral while she worked in Seattle from 1903 to 1916. The cathedral today sponsors numerous outreach ministries, to the poor, the homeless, and the marginalized, such as the Cathedral Kitchen, Homeless Ministry & Nightwatch, St. Vincent de Paul, Environmental Justice, Housing Advocacy, and St. James Immigrant Assistance Program. These are operated out of Cathedral Hall and the Pastoral Outreach Center, once the convent of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, who run Holy Names Academy.

Major artwork at St. James Cathedral includes an extensive collection of stained glass by Charles Connick, installed in 1917 1920 during the rebuilding of the cathedral following the collapse of the dome. In 1994, three new windows were added, the work of Hans Gottfried von Stockhausen, a noted German stained glass artist, who has served on the faculty of the Pilchuck School. In 1999, ceremonial bronze doors were added, the work of German sculptor Ulrich Henn. The central bronze doors portray humanity's pilgrimage to the heavenly Jerusalem. Old Testament scenes begin on the bottom left and show the journey of God's people: the expulsion from Eden, the sacrifice of Noah with a rainbow symbolizing the covenant, and Moses leading the people through the Red Sea. The right side shows Jesus’ journey, again beginning from the bottom: his baptism in the Jordan, the healing of the man born blind and the paralyzed man, preaching the Beatitudes, the entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday; the betrayal by Judas; the passion and carrying the cross. In the tympanum above the door, the victorious Lamb of God brings the pilgrimage to its triumphant conclusion in the heavenly city. Rivers flow out of the city, and on the banks spring up trees, covered in fruit for the healing of the nations. Whereas the angel at Eden pointed the way out of paradise, this angel points the way to a new and greater paradise: the Lamb of God enthroned in heaven. A bronze tabernacle by the same artist was installed in 2003. Henn's only other works in the United States are the bronze gates at the National Cathedral in Washington, D. C.
Above the west door of the cathedral is a black and gilt window (1950) which shows Christ reaching out his hands in blessing. The text reads: “I am the vine, you are the branches” (John 15). The window celebrates the Pacific Northwest in the regional industries of 1950: fishing, shipping, lumber, and manufacturing, and includes a sketch of Mount Rainier. Vines laden with grapes link the northwestern motif with Christ's words. Above the window, a statue of St. James the Greater, patron of the cathedral, surmounts the west face of the building. The figure of St. John Vianney (d. 1859) stands to the left. This patron saint of parish priests served in the French village of Ars, France. On the right is a statue of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (d. 1917), first American citizen to be canonized. She worshipped in St. James Cathedral in its early years, when her missionary travels brought her to Seattle to serve Italian immigrants. All three of the façade statues were added as part of the 1950 renovation.

The cathedral chapel is home to an altarpiece by Florentine artist Neri di Bicci, dating to 1456. It represents the Madonna and Child surrounded by six saints including St. Luke, the physician (with an ox), St. Bartholomew (with the knife used to flay him), St. Lawrence, the Deacon (with the grill on which he was martyred and a palm signifying a martyr's victory), St. John the Baptist (who in the painting is depicted proclaiming “Ecce Agnus Dei,” “Behold the Lamb of God”), St. Martin, 4th century Bishop of Tours, and St. Sebastian, Roman martyr put to death by arrows. This subject, common in Renaissance art, is known as a sacra conversazione, a “holy conversation,” as saints of many different times and places are imagined in “conversation” with Mary and Jesus. The painting underwent a major restoration in 2005 at the Seattle Art Museum, where it was featured as the centerpiece of an exhibit on devotional art of the Renaissance. The original provenance of the painting, and how it came to St. James cathedral, is unknown, although it once hung in the cathedral's baptistery (now the Reconciliation Chapel) until it was moved to the cathedral chapel in 1950.