The European politics of Pope Innocent III (1198-1216)

Innocent III (1198-1216) was one of the most powerful and influential popes. He exerted a wide influence over the Christian regimes of Europe, claiming supremacy over all of Europe's kings. Pope Innocent III played roles in the politics of the Holy Roman Empire, England, France, Spain, Bulgaria, Hungary, Byzantine Empire etc. He is notable for forcing princes to obey his decisions. His papacy asserted the absolute spiritual authority of his office, while still respecting the temporal authority of kings. During the reign of Innocent III, the papacy was at the height of its powers. He was considered to be the most powerful person in Europe at the time. As the intellectual Romanian scholarship lacks a synthesis work on the subject, this study aims to fill this gap in bibliography. In this study we aim to pull together, to evaluate and present in the form of a readable and coherent synthesis, essential purchases of Romanian and international literature, itself the fruit of specialized scholars' labor. Regarding the events that we present in the following pages, theologians and historians will find an overview of major events that happened in Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries.