Innocent Meddling

Pope Innocent III believed in the absolute power of the pope over secular authorities, and he did what he could to assert that power wherever he could.A couple months after Innocent became pope, in March 1198 Philip Duke of Swabia was elected King of Germany. Another claimant, Otto Duke of Brunswick, was preferred by several princes. Philip was the brother of his predecessor, Henry VI, King of Germany and Holy Roman Emperor. Because Henry had married Constance of Sicily, Innocent was concerned that either Philip or (potentially) Henry's son Frederick would make a claim to not only Sicily, but the Italian Peninsula (Sicily controlled a large part of southern Italy called The Regno). In 1201 Innocent officially supported Otto:It is the business of the pope to look after the interests of the Roman empire, since the empire derives its origin and its final authority from the papacy; ..., since three persons have lately been elected king by different parties, namely the youth [Frederick],…