Innocent III | Pope & Leader of the Catholic Church

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[{"p":2,"t":288633},{"p":1,"t":684844},{"p":1,"t":12976},{"p":5,"t":527973},{"p":1,"t":245503},{"p":5,"t":441722},{"p":1,"t":380873},{"p":21,"t":144695},{"p":1,"t":495422},{"p":1,"t":532006}], "sequence": 1, "topics": {} }); </script> <article class="article-content container-lg qa-content px-0 pt-0 pb-40 py-lg-20 content md-expanded" data-topic-id="288633"> <div class="grid gx-0"> <div class="col-auto"> <div class="topic-left-rail md-article-drawer position-relative d-flex border-right-sm border-left-sm open"> <div class="drawer d-flex flex-column open"> <div class="left-rail-section-content"> <div class="topic-left-rail-header text-truncate bg-gray-50 position-relative text-right d-flex align-items-center"> <div class="tlr-title px-20 py-15 text-left"> <em class="material-icons text-gray-400 d-lg-none" data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Innocent-III-pope">Innocent III</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <ul class="list-unstyled my-0" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><div class="pl-25"><a class="link-gray-900 w-100" href="/biography/Innocent-III-pope">Introduction</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref236550"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/biography/Innocent-III-pope#ref236550">Early life and career</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref236551"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/biography/Innocent-III-pope#ref236551">Early pontificate</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref236552"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/biography/Innocent-III-pope/Later-pontificate">Later pontificate</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li></ul> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Innocent-III-pope/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/Innocent-III-pope">Quick Facts & Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Innocent-III-pope/images-videos">Images & Videos</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap ml-15"> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/51/160751-050-A8A232EB/Innocent-III-Abbey-San-Benedetto-Italy-Subiaco.jpg" data-href="/media/1/288633/201515" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/51/160751-004-56FDF6EF/Innocent-III-Abbey-San-Benedetto-Italy-Subiaco.jpg" alt="Innocent III" height="50" /> </a> <a href="/video/pope-election-papal-conclave/298214" data-href="/media/1/288633/298214" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <div class="position-relative --aspect-ratio: 16/9"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/85/253585-138-D72C201D/pope-election-papal-conclave.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop" alt="How is a pope elected?" class="col-100" /> <div class="btn btn-sm btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; left:50%; transform: translate(-50%, -50%)"> <em class="material-icons font-14" data-icon="play_arrow" > </em> </div> </div> </a> </div> <button disabled class="prev-button js-prev-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-blue " aria-label="Previous"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></span> </button> <button disabled class="next-button js-next-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-blue " aria-label="Next"> <span class="material-icons md-24" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></span> </button> </div> </div> <div class="mb-30 tlr-student-links"> <div class="text-gray-900 p-5 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-10 mb-10"> For Students </div> <div class="imagelink-with-image-on-the-side card card-horizontal tlr-img-with-side-link ml-15 link-gray-900 mb-10" > <div class="position-relative card-media" style="flex: 0;"> <a class="ilf-image position-relative" href="/quiz/pop-quiz-19-things-to-know-about-christianity"> <img loading="lazy" 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The female figures are believed to be either Santa Pudenziana and Santa Praxedes or symbols of the Jewish and Gentile churches. 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Viking warriors hold swords and shields. 9th c. AD seafaring warriors raided the coasts of Europe, burning, plundering and killing. Marauders or pirates came from Scandinavia, now Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. European History" width="200" height="200" /> </a> </div> <div class="card-body ilf-content"> <a class="font-weight-semi-bold d-block mb-5 font-16 ilf-title" href="/quiz/european-history" >European History</a> </div> </div> <div class="imagelink-with-image-on-the-side card card-horizontal tlr-img-with-side-link ml-15 link-gray-900 mb-10" > <div class="position-relative card-media" style="flex: 0;"> <a class="ilf-image position-relative" href="/quiz/christianity-quiz"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/67/160167-131-98582C51/Easter-Valladolid-Procession-cross-Nazarenos-Spain-Semana.jpg?w=200&h=200&c=crop" alt="Holy week. Easter. Valladolid. Procession of Nazarenos carry a cross during the Semana Santa (Holy week before Easter) in Valladolid, Spain. 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Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). </div> <div class="type-menu"> <label for="feedback-type" class="label mb-10">Feedback Type</label> <select id="feedback-type" class="form-select mb-30" name="feedbackTypeId" required> <option value="" selected="selected">Select a type (Required)</option> <option value="1">Factual Correction</option> <option value="2">Spelling/Grammar Correction</option> <option value="3">Link Correction</option> <option value="4">Additional Information</option> <option value="5">Other</option> </select> </div> <label for="feedback" class="label mb-10">Your Feedback</label> <textarea id="feedback" class="form-control mb-30" name="feedback" maxlength="3000" rows="7" required></textarea> <button class="btn btn-blue" type="submit">Submit Feedback</button> </form> <div class="success-messaging d-none mt-30"> <div class="title">Thank you for your feedback</div> <p>Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="md-websites-modal size-lg d-none"> <div class="md-modal-body"> <div class="h2 font-serif pb-15 border-bottom font-weight-bold"> External Websites </div> <div class="pb-20"> <ul class="list-unstyled mt-20 lh-lg"> <li><a class="external" href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/rulers/innocent-iii.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener ">Christianity Today - Biography of Innocent III</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="md-websites-ebk-title">Britannica Websites</div> <div class="md-websites-ebk-subtitle">Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.</div> <ul class="list-unstyled bps-topic-web-sites lh-lg"> <li><a class="external" href="https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Pope-Innocent-III/275063" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pope Innocent III - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="toc-header-marker"></div> <button class="ai-ask-button btn btn-sm border-2 btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 d-none mr-0 mr-lg-10 ml-5 ml-sm-10 ml-lg-0 p-10 px-sm-5 px-md-10 js-header-ai-ask-button"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> <div class="caption alternate-titles">Also known as: Lotario di Segni, Lothar of Segni</div> <div class="md-byline module-spacing "> <div class="font-serif font-12"> <span class="written-by text-gray-700"> Written by </span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor" href="/contributor/Kenneth-J-Pennington/5690" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">Kenneth J. Pennington</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">Ken Pennington Kelly-Quinn Professor of Ecclesiastical and Legal History, The Catholic University of America. Author of<i>Pope and Bishops: The Papal Monarchy in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries</i>,...</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Kenneth J. Pennington</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Innocent-III-pope/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn btn-sm border-2 btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 module-spacing js-inline-ai-ask-button p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="qf-title font-weight-bold font-14 mb-10 text-center"> Quick Facts</div> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Original name: </dt> <dd>Lothar of Segni</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Italian: </dt> <dd>Lotario di Segni</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Born: </dt> <dd>1160/61, Gavignano Castle, <a href="/place/Campagna-di-Roma">Campagna di Roma</a>, <a href="/place/Papal-States">Papal States</a> [now in Italy]</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Died: </dt> <dd>July 16, 1216, <a href="/place/Perugia">Perugia</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Title / Office: </dt> <dd><a href="/topic/pope">pope (1198-1216)</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class="facts-item-none d-none"> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Subjects Of Study: </dt> <dd><a href="/topic/papal-primacy">papal primacy</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class="facts-item-none d-none"> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Role In: </dt> <dd><a href="/event/Albigensian-Crusade">Albigensian Crusade</a></dd> <dd><a href="/event/Fourth-Crusade">Fourth Crusade</a></dd> <dd><a href="/event/Lateran-Council-Fourth-1215">Fourth Lateran Council</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/Innocent-III-pope"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> <button class="facts-list-show-more-btn mt-15 p-0 mx-auto btn font-14 d-block font-weight-normal"> <span class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_more"></span> <span class="show-more-label">Show More</span> </button> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref68466"></span>Innocent III</strong> (born 1160/61, Gavignano Castle, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Campagna-di-Roma" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Campagna di Roma</a>, Papal States [now in Italy]—died July 16, 1216, Perugia) was the most significant <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/pope" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">pope</a> of the Middle Ages. Elected pope on January 8, 1198, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Innocent-III-antipope" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Innocent III</a> reformed the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Roman-Curia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Roman Curia</a>, reestablished and expanded the pope’s authority over the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Papal-States" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Papal States</a>, worked tirelessly to launch <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Crusades" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Crusades</a> to recover the Holy Land, combated <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/heresy" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">heresy</a> in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Italy</a> and southern France, shaped a powerful and original doctrine of papal power within the church and in <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="secular" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/secular" data-type="MW">secular</a> affairs, and in 1215 presided over the fourth <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/First-Lateran-Council" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lateran Council</a>, which reformed many clerical and lay practices within the church.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker h2"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref236550"><h2 class="h1">Early life and career</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The son of Trasimund, count of Segni, and Claricia dei Scotti, the daughter of a noble Roman family, Lothar began his education in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Rome" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Rome</a>, possibly at the Schola Cantorum. After his early education in Rome, he traveled north in the late 1170s or 1180 to study in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Paris" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Paris</a>, the leading centre of theological studies. Although little is known about his stay in Paris, what is known is suggestive. His teachers, Peter of Corbeil and Peter the Chanter, were the most accomplished theologians in Europe. <span id="ref68479"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Stephen-Langton" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Stephen Langton</a>, whom Lothar as Pope Innocent later appointed <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/archbishop-of-Canterbury" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">archbishop of Canterbury</a>, and Robert of Courson, whom he appointed as a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/legate-Roman-Catholicism" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">papal legate</a> and later raised to the cardinalate, were among his fellow students. In Paris Lothar learned to use the Bible as a tool for understanding and solving problems. His theological training shaped his thought and his language for the rest of his life and provided a foundation for his outlook and his policies.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">After Paris Lothar studied in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Bologna-Italy" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Bologna</a>, whose university was the preeminent one for the study of canon and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/civil-law-Romano-Germanic" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">civil law</a>. Although he may have pursued law for more than two or three years (the chronology of his life at this time is uncertain), it did not become the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="discipline" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discipline" data-type="MW">discipline</a> that shaped his worldview or his vision of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/papacy" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">papacy</a>. During the 1190s Lothar wrote three theological tracts: <em>De miseria condicionis humane</em> (<em><span id="ref68469"></span>On the Misery of the Human Condition</em>), <em>De missarum mysteriis</em> (<em><span id="ref68470"></span>On the Mysteries of the Mass</em>), and <em>De quadripartita specie nuptiarum</em> (<em>On Four Types of Marriage</em>). The first was enormously popular in the Middle Ages, and the others demonstrate that he was a competent, if not gifted, theologian. All three tracts demonstrate his ability to use the Bible to understand Christian institutions in creative and original ways. They also reveal that his experience in Paris shaped his worldview more than his stay in Bologna.</p><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Lothar probably entered clerical orders in Rome while he was a young boy. After his studies in Paris, Lothar was made a subdeacon by Pope <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gregory-VIII-pope" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Gregory VIII</a> in late 1187. Pope <span id="ref68468"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Clement-III-antipope" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Clement III</a> elevated him to the office of cardinal deacon of SS. Sergius and Bacchus in December 1189 or January 1190. He worked in the papal curia during the 1190s but neither received important commissions nor held significant positions. In spite of his youth and lack of administrative experience, the cardinals quickly elected Lothar pope on the same day that the aged pope <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Celestine-III" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Celestine III</a> died (January 8, 1198). He was given or took the name Innocent III, was ordained a priest on February 21, 1198, and was <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="consecrated" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/consecrated" data-type="MW">consecrated</a> as bishop of Rome the next day, on the feast day of St. Peter’s Chair. Innocent undoubtedly chose the day of his <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/consecration" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">consecration</a> carefully. He wrote many sermons after he became pope, several of which <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="commemorated" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commemorated" data-type="MW">commemorated</a> the feast day of his consecration. When Innocent reflected on the first pope and Peter’s <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="legacy" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legacy" data-type="MW">legacy</a> in these sermons, he presented a luminous vision of the papal office and the pope’s role in Christendom.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker h3"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref236551"><h2 class="h1">Early pontificate</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="298214" data-asm-type="video"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="video" video-id="253585"><a data-id="253585" class="gtm-assembly-link d-flex justify-content-center" style="--aspect-ratio: 16/9" href="/video/pope-election-papal-conclave/-298214"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/85/253585-138-D72C201D/pope-election-papal-conclave.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop" alt="How is a pope elected?" loading="lazy"><script type="application/json"> { "sources": [ { "file" : "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/EJYSD1NJ.m3u8" } ], "image": "https://cdn.britannica.com/85/253585-138-D72C201D/pope-election-papal-conclave.jpg" ,"tracks": [ { "file" : "//assets-jpcust.jwpsrv.com/tracks/R4qbvBGW.vtt", "label": "English" } ] ,"adfile": "//content.jwplatform.com/manifests/PEvRJuFP.m3u8" } </script><div class="btn btn-xl btn-white btn-circle position-absolute shadow" style="top: 50%; transform: translateY(-50%)"><em class="material-icons" data-icon="play_arrow"></em></div></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><span class="md-assembly-title font-weight-bold mr-5 d-inline font-sans-serif md-video-caption" video-control="253585">How is a pope elected?</span><span>Popes are elected for life. How do they get the job?</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><a class="font-14 mt-10 d-inline-block" href="/biography/Innocent-III-pope/images-videos">See all videos for this article</a></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">At the beginning of his pontificate, Innocent faced several serious problems. Emperor <span id="ref68473"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-VI-Holy-Roman-emperor" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Henry VI</a> had died, and there were two candidates for the <span id="ref68472"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Holy-Roman-Empire" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">imperial throne</a>: Henry’s brother, <span id="ref68475"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Philip-king-of-Germany" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Philip of Swabia</a>, and <span id="ref68476"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Otto-IV" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Otto of Brunswick</a>. The German princes were divided over the succession, southern Italy was in political shambles, and the Christian states in the Holy Land were in the hands of the Muslims. In the second half of the 12th century, heresy had become a grave problem in southern France. Papal authority in the city of Rome and over the Papal States had disintegrated, and the papal curia needed reform. Innocent faced all these problems simultaneously.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/pop-quiz-19-things-to-know-about-christianity" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/10/58810-050-09BA4000/Christ-Ruler-Apostles-Evangelists-figures-Santa-Pudenziana-417-ce.jpg" alt="Christ as Ruler, with the Apostles and Evangelists (represented by the beasts). The female figures are believed to be either Santa Pudenziana and Santa Praxedes or symbols of the Jewish and Gentile churches. Mosaic in the apse of Santa Pudenziana, Rome,A" class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">Pop Quiz: 19 Things to Know About Christianity</div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The new pope’s vigour and resolve can be seen in the letters of the papal registers and in a chronicle, <em><span id="ref838037"></span>Gesta Innocentii III</em> (“The Deeds of Innocent III”), written about 1208 by an anonymous member of Innocent’s curia who apparently knew the pope very well. In one of his first letters, Innocent ordered King <span id="ref68477"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Philip-II-king-of-France" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Philip Augustus</a> of France to take back his wife, whom the king had abandoned. With this <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="mandate" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mandate" data-type="MW">mandate</a> Innocent signaled his intention to extend papal jurisdiction and authority into the marital affairs of Christian princes.</p><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">From the beginning of his pontificate, Innocent also sought to establish papal temporal authority over Rome and the <span id="ref68471"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Papal-States" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Papal States</a>. Immediately after his consecration, he received homage from the leaders of the Roman nobility. In order to dominate the city of Rome, Innocent ordered the construction of the Torre dei’Conti, a massive military fortification in the middle of the city, which he placed under the command of his brother Richard. Earlier popes had confined their claims of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="sovereignty" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sovereignty" data-type="MW">sovereignty</a> over the Papal States (Patrimony of St. Peter) to the area immediately around Rome, but Innocent used the power vacuum created by the death of the emperor to make much more expansive claims. He systematically sent papal legates to the cities of central Italy to secure their loyalty. Within a remarkably short time, not only nearby cities but also some as far away as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ancona-Italy" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Ancona</a>, Assisi, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Perugia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Perugia</a>, and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Spoleto" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Spoleto</a> had declared their <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="allegiance" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/allegiance" data-type="MW">allegiance</a> to the pope. By October 30, 1198, Innocent sent a letter to the rectors of those cities that had submitted to papal lordship. In it he fashioned a striking image of papal authority that he would repeat throughout his pontificate. Papal authority was represented by the Sun, and the Moon signified the power of lay princes. Both powers were established by God, he explained, but, just as the Moon received its splendour from the Sun, royal power acquired its greatness and dignity from papal authority.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=august-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Innocent’s creative and passionate <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="rhetoric" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rhetoric" data-type="MW">rhetoric</a> became a part of his ruling style, and his deeds matched his rhetoric. He established a much larger papal territory than any of his predecessors had controlled, and, from his pontificate on, the pope functioned as an important secular prince in central Italy. Innocent understood the dangers of a pope exercising secular power, however. In the <em>Gesta</em>, his biographer commented that the more Innocent wished to free himself from secular affairs, the greater they burdened him. Innocent, he wrote, had often remarked, “Who touches tar is dirtied by it” (Ecclesiasticus 13:1).</p><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD9 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Innocent was <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="consumed" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/consumed" data-type="EB">consumed</a> by a passion to reconquer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Jerusalem" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Jerusalem</a> and the Holy Land, which had been lost following the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Hattin" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Battle of Ḥaṭṭīn</a> in 1187. On August 15, 1198, he sent letters to the kings and bishops of Christendom, imploring them to take up the cross and launch a new <span id="ref68481"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Crusades" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Crusade</a>. He promised Crusaders a new papal <span id="ref838005"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/indulgence" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">indulgence</a>, took them under papal protection, and imposed a tax on the clergy to help pay for the expedition. In spite of Innocent’s best efforts, the Fourth Crusade (1202–04) lacked strong leadership and was chronically short of money. The Venetians built a fleet to transport a large army, but the French and German <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="contingents" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contingents" data-type="MW">contingents</a> were only one-third of their projected size and could not fulfill their contractual obligations to pay the Venetians for transport. The result was a disaster for the papacy and for the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Byzantine-Empire" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Byzantine Empire</a>. The Venetians persuaded the army to divert the Crusade to Constantinople because they wanted to depose one emperor and replace him with another. Outraged, Innocent excommunicated the Venetians, but he could not thwart their plans. The fleet arrived in Constantinople, and after a siege the city fell into Latin hands (April 12, 1204). Innocent accepted the result, mistakenly believing that the conquest of Constantinople would reunite the Latin and Greek churches. Instead, the Latins ruled over a truncated empire until 1261 and irrevocably weakened it. After the Greeks regained control of the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="Byzantine" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Byzantine" data-type="MW">Byzantine</a> Empire and church, they rejected papal authority, and the two churches have remained divided.</p><span class="marker MOD9 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD10 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Innocent’s first year was also marked by his efforts to establish his vision of papal monarchical power and authority within the church. Combining a streak of hardheaded practicality with an intellectual’s interest in ideas, Innocent transformed the theory of papal monarchy and pushed the papacy in new directions. His most creative <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="rhetorical" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rhetorical" data-type="MW">rhetorical</a> statements on papal power were expressed in letters that expanded the authority of the pope over emperor, kings, princes, and bishops. He claimed that the pope “has the authority because he does not exercise the office of man, but of the true God on earth.” Moreover, he <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="implemented" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implemented" data-type="MW">implemented</a> this vision in a number of ways. The author of the <em>Gesta</em> painted a portrait of a pope who had great skill in judicial affairs and who participated personally in some of the legal cases that the papal court accepted on appeal. By reforming the papal curia and reorganizing the papal <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/judiciary" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">judicial system</a>, Innocent strengthened the hierarchical structure of the church. He also <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="mandated" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mandated" data-type="MW">mandated</a> the subordination of the bishops to the pope and insisted that only the pope could approve episcopal translations, resignations, and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="depositions" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/depositions" data-type="MW">depositions</a>. At the same time, Innocent swept away almost all the older, decentralized institutions that were characteristic of the church in the early Middle Ages.</p><span class="marker MOD10 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD11 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">When Innocent was elevated to the papacy, the political situation in Italy and Germany was precarious because of <span id="ref838048"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Philip-king-of-Germany" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Philip of Swabia</a>’s and <span id="ref838049"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Otto-IV" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Otto of Brunswick</a>’s competing claims for the imperial throne. The struggle for the succession to the throne would be the most difficult problem Innocent faced in his first years as pope and would be complicated further by imperial and papal relations with southern Italy and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Sicily" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Sicily</a>. By the time of his death in 1197, Emperor Henry VI had subjected almost the entire Italian peninsula, including most of the Papal States, and Sicily to his rule. Henry’s claim to the south—the Norman kingdom of Sicily, a papal fief subject to the authority of the pope—was strengthened by his marriage to Constance, the daughter of King <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Roger-II" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Roger II</a> of Sicily. The <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="legitimate" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legitimate" data-type="MW">legitimate</a> heir to the kingdom of Sicily was Henry’s three-year old son, the future emperor <span id="ref68474"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Frederick-II-Holy-Roman-emperor" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Frederick II</a>. Constance promoted Frederick’s interests by putting him under the protection of Innocent, who thus became regent. The pope’s challenge was to mediate the imperial succession while preserving the rights of Frederick and, especially, maintaining the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="integrity" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/integrity" data-type="MW">integrity</a> of the Papal States and papal power.</p><span class="marker MOD11 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD12 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Faced with these challenges, Innocent moved quickly and effectively to recover the Papal States and also attempted to exercise his rights as feudal overlord of the kingdom of Sicily. In his dealings with the claimants to the imperial throne, Innocent sought to separate Sicily from the empire because any ruler who possessed both crowns was a threat to the Papal States. He exacted promises from both Otto and Philip to respect the boundaries of papal territory, but both candidates betrayed his trust. The importance and seriousness of the problem can be seen in the <em>Gesta</em>, which devotes many pages to the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="dispute" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/dispute" data-type="EB">dispute</a>, and in the special papal register that Innocent’s curia maintained for preserving a record of it (<em>Super negotio Romani imperii</em>; “Concerning the Business of the Roman Empire”). Fearing the ambitions of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hohenstaufen-dynasty" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Hohenstaufen</a> Philip, Innocent supported Otto until the murder of Philip in 1208, at which point Otto violated his agreements with the pope. In 1212 Innocent was forced to turn to Henry’s son, Frederick, whose rule the pope had hoped to limit to the Sicilian kingdom. Although forced to support a candidate against his better judgment, Innocent used the dispute to establish the pope’s right to evaluate imperial candidates in a contested election. <em>Per venerabilem</em> (“Through Our Venerable Brother”), the <span id="ref838025"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/decretal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">decretal </a>letter he wrote in 1202 reserving this right, quickly became part of <span id="ref68492"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/canon-law" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">canon law</a>, even though Innocent’s claim was without precedent.</p><span class="marker MOD12 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD13 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">At the beginning of his second year as pope, Innocent turned his attention to the problem of heresy within the borders of Christendom. In a decretal letter, <em><span id="ref838051"></span>Vergentis in senium</em> (March 25, 1199), that he sent to Viterbo, a city within the Papal States, Innocent declared that heresy was treason against God. Consequently, in pursuing heretics, he applied the sanctions and employed the procedural norms used in ancient Roman treason trials. This began Innocent’s long campaign to <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="eradicate" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/eradicate" data-type="MW">eradicate</a> heresy, which lasted until the end of his pontificate and culminated in the <span id="ref838053"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Albigensian-Crusade" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Albigensian Crusade</a>. Cathar (<span id="ref68482"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Albigenses" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Albigensian</a>) heretics had become prevalent in southern France. As early as 1199 the pope sent legates to deal with these heretics and their supporters, and in 1206 <span id="ref838011"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Dominic" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">St. Dominic</a> began to preach to the heretics with Innocent’s support. These efforts produced few results. Finally, in 1208, following the assassination of the papal legate, Innocent launched a Crusade against the heretics and gave the participants full Crusader <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="indulgences" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/indulgences" data-type="MW">indulgences</a> and privileges. The war lasted until after Innocent’s death. Even after a political settlement brought the fighting to an end, the Cathar heresy flourished in the region until the beginning of the 14th century. Innocent’s Crusade was significant, despite the survival of Catharism, because with it the pope began the practice of using the Crusade to combat papal enemies wherever they were found. Later popes called for Crusades against disobedient Christian rulers and even cardinals of the church.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD13 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD14 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">At the same time he was supporting St. Dominic, Innocent permitted <span id="ref838014"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Francis-of-Assisi" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">St. Francis of Assisi</a> to continue recruiting brothers and gave limited approval to the <span id="ref68486"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Franciscans" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Franciscan religious life</a> in 1210.</p><span class="marker MOD14 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-simplify-root"></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":2,"pageId":288633,"pageLength":2339,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.133.48"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.133.48' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"C","adLeg":"C","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"BIO_PAGINATED","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":true,"hasAiTopQuestions":false,"hasSimplifyButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Innocent III | Pope & Leader of the Catholic Church | Britannica