St James' Church is an English-speaking Anglican church in Porto (also known as Oporto), Portugal. It is part of the Diocese in Europe. The church is surrounded by a churchyard, and its history is closely tied with the British merchants of that city.

Origins British merchants (known as the British Factory) had been resident in Porto (always then known in English as Oporto) for many centuries, since the Treaty of Windsor (1386) between the two countries. The earliest record of a chaplain to the merchants dates from 1671, when a John Brawlerd is noted as the chaplain for four years.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), pp 6-7. Venn records that William Lloyd (later Bishop of Norwich and then a non-juring bishop) was chaplain to the Factory, without dates but, in view of Lloyd's later appointments, must have been prior to 1668. The second definitively recorded chaplain, Dr Samuel Barton, was expelled in 1683, at the behest of the Portuguese Inquisition.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), pp 10-12. The next chaplain, Edward Hind (or Hinde), was similarly expelled, in 1687.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 15. After two brief appointments, there was then an almost 20-year period before another chaplain could be appointed.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 15. Since then, with the exception of seven years during the Peninsular War, there has been a continuous presence of chaplains.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 15.

The erection of a church building and the setting out of a churchyard for Protestant burials, however, were even more contentious than the mere appointment of a chaplain.

Church building The earliest services were held in merchants' houses; the location appears to have changed from week to week, in order to avoid the attentions of the Inquisition.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 34.

By a treaty of 1810 the Portuguese Prince Regent (then exiled, by the Peninsular War, in Brazil) permitted British residents to erect their own churches. This permission was on the proviso that the external appearance was of private dwelling houses and that no bells were rung to announce the services.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 33. No steps were taken to erect the church building until 1814.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 36. Work finally commenced on 19 June 1815, coincidentally the day after the Battle of Waterloo.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 43. The architect was Joaquim da Costa Lima Sampaio, who also designed the palace that is now the Soares dos Reis National Museum.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 43. It was designed to mimic the ballroom at the Factory House: its width is identical with the ballroom.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 45. The interior stucco work, by António Alves Bezerra, was completed in 1817, and the building as a whole in 1818.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 46. The furnishings were typical for the era. The altar was described as a communion table; behind it on the east wall were panels depicting the Lord's Prayer, the Creed and the Ten Commandments; and the pulpit was a triple-decker (clerk's desk, reading desk for the clergyman, and pulpit for the sermon).Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 46. It was not until 1843 that the church was consecrated.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 58.

The original church did not have a gallery; one was erected at the west end in 1847.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 63. The church was extended eastwards in 1866-67, including the erection of transepts.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 72.

Initially there were pew rents. These were abolished by the British Government in 1865, but the subscriptions (for the same amount as the pew rent that had hitherto been in place) remained as the qualification for attending general meetings. The subscriptions were only finally abolished in 1939, as abolition was one of the conditions imposed by Canon Johnston for accepting the chaplaincy.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 77. As late as at least 1982 some pews were still marked with family names, and were reserved for private use.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 103.

The windows, originally plain and later frosted, were replaced with coloured glass by R. Morris & Son in 1905.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 97. In 1926 it was decided to replace the coloured glass with stained glass by Clayton and Bell, which took place over the following decade. Three windows were installed in 1927 depicting St James the Great, St John the Evangelist and St George, and a further three in 1928 depicting St Paul, St Patrick and St Eunice. A seventh window was installed in 1931 depicting an Angel announcing the Risen Christ and an eighth in 1936 depicting St Luke.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 97. The east window was installed earlier, in 1868, following the extension. It was made by James Powell and Sons of London and depicts the Bread of Life and the True Vine.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 97.

The churchmanship of St James' was typical of the pre-Oxford Movement era. The Rev Dr Joseph Oldknow was Vicar of the famously High Church Holy Trinity, Bordesely in Birmingham; his successor, Richard Enraght, was so High that he was imprisoned. Oldknow visited Oporto in 1855, and was shocked by what he saw, particularly the presence of British Nonconformists ("Presbyterians, Independents and Wesleyans") in the congregation.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 86. The main service at that time was mattins. From 1879 to 1892 Holy Communion was celebrated 14 times a year: on the first Sunday of each month, and Ascension Day, Whitsunday, Trinity Sunday and Christmas Day,Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 87. but not, apparently, Easter Day, despite the Book of Common Prayer exhortation.Book of Common Prayer, 1662: rubric at the end of the service of Holy Communion, which provides "that every Parishioner shall communicate at the least three times in the year, of which Easter to be one".

An early service of Holy Communion (a High Church introduction) commenced on a monthly basis in 1890, and, by 1931, had become weekly.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 88. Other High Church introductions in 1931 included a surpliced choirDelaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 95. and two candlesticks on the altar, to accompany the cross that had been placed there in 1906.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 104.

An organ was installed in the church at the time of its construction. That original organ, of which nothing more is known than it was 'small', was located to the south side of the communion table.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 91. It was moved to the newly built gallery in 1847. That first organ was replaced in 1868 by a rebuilt organ, purchased from J. W. Walker & Sons Ltd of London.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 91. The Walker organ was a two-manual seven-stop instrument.

In turn, the Walker organ was replaced in 1890 by a new organ built by Norman and Beard of Norwich.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 92. Both it and its predecessor were powered by water, necessitating a large well and tank behind the church. The climate was challenging for the organ, and in 1893, after just three years, it needed a complete overhaul. In 1910 the water-power was replaced with a petrol motor and in 1932 finally converted to electricity. The organ was reconditioned in 1921 by William Hill & Son & Norman & Beard Ltd. (as Norman and Beard had by then become) with a pneumatic system.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 92. That restoration was undertaken as a war memorial. Further work took place in 1937, resulting in a two-manual 29-stop instrument.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 92. To celebrate the rebuild, a violoncello and organ recital was given early in 1938 by the Portuguese cellist Guilhermina Suggia and the organist Cyril Langley Salmons.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 93. Further restoration work was undertaken in 1957, but in 1974 it was decided to scrap the pipe organ, and replace it with an electronic instrument, purchased from Heyliger's of the Netherlands.Delaforce, John, Anglicans Abroad: The History of the Chaplaincy and Church of St James at Oporto, (1982: SPCK), p 94.

The building is listed as Imóvel com Interesse Patrimonial by the City Council of Porto under the reference M100.

Church hall There is a church hall, called the Well House.

Churchyard