Giovanni was a member of the Roman noble family of Colonna.[1] His father was Oddone di Pietro Colonna, a member of the entourage of the Emperor Henry VI in 1195.[1][2] His brothers were Landolfo, Oddone and Giordano. His date of birth is unknown. His first appearance in the surviving record is from 1203. He bore the title magister, but nothing is known of his education. He acquired a benefice in England sometime before becoming a cardinal. He later added more, being on good terms with Kings John and Henry III.[1]
On 21 April 1217, Honorius III appointed Colonna papal legate to the Latin East.[1] He accompanied the Latin EmperorPeter to Epirus, where they were taken captive by Theodore Komnenos Doukas.[2] Through papal intervention, Colonna was released in early 1218. He continued to Constantinople, where he supported the Empress Yolanda until her death in September 1219, when he took the reins of government.[1] He returned to Rome in 1222, bringing with him the relic of the Column of the Flagellation.[2]
