Commentary
Quia maior
Innocent III
Crusade letter issued by Pope Innocent III in April 1213 summoning the Fifth Crusade. It applies the number of the beast in Revelation to the span of Muhammad’s faith and says almost six hundred of its 666 years have passed.
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Innocent III: the beast’s 666 years, almost 600 completed · commentary →
Edition and location
Innocent III, Quia maior (1213), letter XVI.28 “Universis Christi fidelibus per Maguntinensem provinciam constitutis. De negotio terrae sanctae”, in J.-P. Migne, Patrologia Latina 216 (Paris), col. 818 (Internet Archive patrologiaecur216mign, leaf n412). Transcribed from the page image. The print’s “regorti” (for Gregorii) and “sexcenda” (for sexcenta) are retained as printed; æ ligatures retained; line-end hyphenation joined. Followed in the note by a new AI-assisted English translation (Rainbow Watch, 2026), labelled as such; the translation renders the intended Gregory.
Letter XVI.28, PL 216, col. 818