Rauna Church was built in c. 1262, the same year as Rauna Castle following the proposal of the Archbishop of Riga, Albert II. Since the beginning of the 16th century, an evangelic Lutheran church has been operating in it.
Rauna Church has survived wars, it has been demolished and re-built several times. In the 18th century annexes were built to the Church. The last reconstruction of the church took place at the end of the 1930s. The relief “Adam and Eve”, created in the 13th- 14th century, is seen above the west portal, above the main entrance of the church is the relief “Christ on the Cross”. Famous priests such as Jānis Reiters, Ādams Jende, Pēteris Apkalns and others have served in Rauna Church.
The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.