Pope Innocent III: Fighting The Holy War

On November 27, 1095, Pope Urban II gave a supposedly important speech at the end of a church meeting in Clermont, France. In it he had called upon the nobleness of the Franks, to go to the East and assist their Christian “brothers”, the Byzantines, against the attacks of the Muslim Turks. He also apparently encouraged them to liberate Jerusalem, the most sacred and holy city in Christendom, for the Muslims had ruled it since taking it from the Christian Byzantines in A.D. 638. The Crusades were a series of wars between Christians and others to take back Jerusalem.

During his Papacy, Pope John XXIII published several encyclicals promoting world peace(Pacem in Terris) and increasing the consciousness of one’s dignity and rights of workers, women and newly independent nations (Mater et Magisterum). Pacem in Terris was addressed to the whole world and received warmly by Christians and non-Christians alike. It altered thinking about the Cold War and initiated the resurgence of Catholic social teaching.

In January of 1198, after holding office during the relatively short reigns of four popes and achieving the position of Cardinal Deacon, he succeeded Pope Celestine III. Innocent III was thirty-seven years of age.

Pope Innocent III began a sequence of changes that influenced the face of secular and ecclesiastical Europe through careful use of law and political manipulation. It has been remarked that the papacy acquired and retained the most power under the leadership of Pope Innocent III during the late 12th and early 13th centuries. I plan to examine sources primarily pertaining to the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 and secondly to a collection of Innocent III’s papal letters. In my analysis, I hope to draw a correlation between Innocent III's actions and these actions influence on medieval society and why this period is considered to be the height of papal power since its inception.

He immediately found himself in a difficult position as pope, with numerous issues arising, such as the hostility escalating between the Holy Roman Emperor and the papacy, the increase of Islamic incursions into the Holy Land and of course the Mongol invasion of Europe. There was indeed prior warning of the defensive vulnerability of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, as Pope Innocent IV received a letter complaining that there were only one hundred pilgrim knights defending the city, and more reinforcements from Western Europe was needed for protection. Although this may have been note by the newly appointed Pope, the struggle with the Holy Roman Emperor through the continuation of Pope Gregory IX’s policy against Frederick II may have overshadowed this plea from the Holy Land. In fact, Pope Innocent IV’s position was so untenable in Rome due to the Emperor’s actions to increase dissent, that he fled to Lyon and immediately set about organising the Council of Lyon for 1245. His letter to Henry III was part of an effort from his base in Lyon to call for a crusade in reaction to the sacking of Jerusalem by the Khwarezmians, but he struggled to garner much support for the crusade due to the internal struggles within Europe, with only King Louis IX fully committed to the campaign. The relationship between Pope Innocent IV and King Henry III is one of note, as since the ties between Rome and the English King were established early through the papal support given to Henry at the end of the Baron’s war. The papacy desperately needed political allies due to the increasing threat posed by the military might of the Holy Roman Emperor and Henry II could be said to be one of them. Although the papacy could find respite through their relationship between the King of France and King of England respectively, the relationship between the two kingdoms was strenuous. A crusade

The first crusades, from 1095-1099, the time of atmost violence and death(Extra Credits).Hundreds of thousands of peasants and innocent children were horribly slaughtered in breathtaking ways ranging from an arrow to the chest, to having their bodies split in half. But, there were many revolutionary ideas and inventions that were also introduced including, the revival of learning, the growing food supply, and more. The crusades starring Peter The Hermit, Pope Urban II that both slaughtered over ten thousand jews and are overall, horrible people (Biel). The Crusades started from an inspiring speech by Pope Urban II but how did that affect the people? A breathtaking amount of people including innocent children were horribly slaughtered in the

The Crusades were the first tactical mission by Western Christianity in order to recapture the Muslim conquered Holy Lands. Several people have been accredited with the launch of the crusades including Peter the Hermit however it is now understood that this responsibility rested primarily with Pope Urban II . The main goal of the Crusades was the results of an appeal from Alexius II, who had pleaded for Western Volunteers help with the prevention of any further invasions. The Pope’s actions are viewed as him answering the pleas of help of another in need, fulfilling his Christian right. However, from reading the documents it is apparent that Pope Urban had ulterior motives for encouraging engagement in the war against the Turks. The

It was Pope Eugene III who lead the second Holy crusade war against Islam. Establishment of the four-counties are the result in the first Crusade war; the County of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch, the County of Tripoli and the Kingdom of Jerusalem. On Christmas Eve, 1144, Zengi's troops took the capital of the County of Edessa and destroyed the oldest Crusader state. The fall of Edessa was because the county was weak, their population was low and they were frequent to attacks. The West reacted strongly to this disaster, and the result was the Second Crusade, preached by St. Bernard of Clairvaux and led by King Louis VII of France and the Holy Roman Emperor Conrad II. It was Pope Eugenius III that responded to this invasion of Edessa

The Crusades, a series of wars, are an extremely important part of history in the 12th century, occurring during the Middle Ages. The Middle East or the Holy Land was always a place that Christians traveled to to make pilgrimages. The Seljuk Turks eventually took control of Jerusalem and all Christians were not allowed in the Holy City. As the Turks power grew, they threatened to take over the Byzantine Empire and Constantinople. The Byzantine Emperor, Alexius I, asked Pope Urban II for help and Pope agreed, hoping to strengthen his own power. He He united the Christians in Europe and In 1095, Pope Urban II waged waged war against muslims in order to “reclaim the holy land.”

His contributions changed ways of live at his time. For example he brung back the Augustinian tradition of salvation. He did not believe there was a place suffering because of souls of sinners. He did not agree with the freedom of will. He disagreed with leaders before him that made laws.

According to historians, the time of which Pope Innocent III ruled was the height of the papal monarchy in Medieval times. Innocent was well-loved because he used his power where he was supposed to, put bad kings in their places, and was not too worldly. If he hadn’t had been the ideal pope, he would not have gotten the papacy as far as he did. He made it clear that he was the most powerful ruler when he made the sun and moon analogy. He radiates God’s authority, and the king just reflects it-- just as the moon reflects the sun’s light.

The fourth Crusade was one of the most astonishing turn of events during the Middle Ages. Each Crusade was called for one purpose, to reconquer the Holy Land from the Muslims. With that in mind, the fourth Crusade was disaster, not only failing to get anywhere near Jerusalem but then to attack and conquer two Christian cities, which had been unprecedented to this time. When discussing these points in history, it is important to discuss how such events came to be, and whilst the sacking of Zara and Constantinople are not in question, what is in question is how much of a role did Pope Innocent III did play in the 4th Crusade? Was he the mastermind, or was control of the 4th Crusade taken from him? This

He proposed this through the preaching of the holy gospel and opening the door to all religious beliefs. He promised religious freedom and property and wealth to all.

He was young and incapable, and gave the papacy a bad name by acting sinfully. The people lost respect for the church, and could no longer view it as the ideal way of life. These views were altered in the High Middle Ages when the papacy became increasingly powerful in a prosperous time. The centralization of the church enabled Christianity to revitalize the spirit and faith of the Church. The church was organized by several reforming movements of the cluny, monastery, and papacy. Corruption was cleansed by new clerical laws, in addition to the canon law, that banned simony, clerical marriages, and immorality in the church. The succession of popes became more favorable because the expectations of the pope were heightened, as he was seen as a leader of faith having the grandest morals. Pope Gregory VII brought hope to the people by wanting to establish "right order in the world," and this stimulated people to regain faith in Christianity. Christianity influenced art, literature, and education. Art and architecture were ways to demonstrate Christian belief through divine cathedrals, paintings of biblical scenes, and portraits of popes. Charlemagne initiated the increase of literacy importance by instituting schooling in monastic communities. Changes in education during this time period were the foundation of cathedral schools, interests in ancient texts, and the education of the common people with the

The contribution of Pope John XXIII has been profound, as many of his initiatives and actions are still resonating today. His acceptance of Jesus’ words “I came to save all nations.” Represented his motivation to do well and bring peace upon the world. He was an advocate of Christian unity, social justice, human rights and the promotion of world peace. It is through his development of the Second Vatican Council, his contribution to ecumenism and his empathy for humanity that Pope John XXIII made a significant impact upon the development and expression of Christianity.