Pope Innocent III

Pope Innocent III (Latin: Innocentius Tertius; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216) was an Italian priest of the Roman Catholic Church and the 177th Pope from 1198 until his death in 1216.^[1]

Pope Innocent III
Bishop of Rome
Papacy began	8 January 1198
Papacy ended	16 July 1216
Predecessor	Celestine III
Successor	Honorius III
Orders
Ordination	21 February 1198
Consecration	22 February 1198
Created cardinal	September 1190 by Clement III
Personal details
Birth name	Lotario de' Conti di Segni
Born	1160 or 1161 Gavignano, Papal States
Died	16 July 1216 (aged 55–56) Perugia, Papal States
Other popes named Innocent

Early life

Lotario di Conti was born at Anagni^[2] in central Italy. His father was Count Trasimund of Segni^[3] who was a member of the Conti family.

During the short reigns of Pope Lucius III, Pope Urban III, Pope Gregory VIII, and Pope Clement III, he served in the church bureaucracy.^[3]

Cardinal

In 1190, Clement III raised him to the rank of Cardinal.^[3]

Pope

Cardinal Segni was unanimously elected pope on January 8, 1198; and he took the name of Innocent III.^[4]

Pope Innocent was involved in Italian and European political disputes.^[3]

Pope Innocent promoted the theory that the spiritual power of the church was greater than than any king or emperor.^[5] Innocent was the first pope to form a Papal state.^[6]

Crusades

Innocent III was responsible for starting the Fourth Crusade, the Albigensian Crusade, and the Fifth Crusade.^[7]

Lateran Council

In 1215, Innocent brought together the church's bishops and cardinals in a meeting called the Fourth Lateran Council.^[3]

Related pages

• List of popes
• List of popes from the Conti family

References

The Coat of Arms of Innocent III

1. "List of Popes," Catholic Encyclopedia (2009); retrieved 2011-11-02.
2. "Agnani", Catholic Encyclopedia; retrieved 2011-11-6.
3. "Pope Innocent III", Catholic Encyclopedia; retrieved 2011-10-31.
4. The Penny Cyclopædia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. C. Knight. 1838. pp. 479–480.
5. Chisholm, Hugh (1910). The Encyclopedia Britannica: A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature and General Information. Encyclopedia Britannica Company. pp. 578–579.
6. Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge (1840). The Penny Cyclopaedia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge: Organ - Pertinax. Knight. p. 198.
7. Pope Innocent III", Crusades Encyclopedia (2005); retrieved 2011-11-6.

Other websites

Media related to Innocentius III at Wikimedia Commons

•  "Pope Innocent III" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.
• Catholic Hierarchy, Pope in sequence
• Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church Archived 2011-10-30 at the Wayback Machine, Cardinal Segni Archived 2017-06-01 at the Wayback Machine

Preceded by Pope Celestine III

Pope 1198–1216

Succeeded by Pope Honorius III