Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine’s Day — and its patron saint — is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.
One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.
Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.
According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first ‘valentine’ greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl — who may have been his jailor’s daughter — who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed ‘From your Valentine,’ an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It’s no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.
While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial — which probably occurred around 270 A.D — others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to ‘christianize’ celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.
To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification.
The boys then sliced the goat’s hide into strips, dipped them in the sacrificial blood and took to the streets, gently slapping both women and fields of crops with the goat hide strips. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would then each choose a name out of the urn and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day around 498 A.D. The Roman ‘lottery’ system for romantic pairing was deemed un-Christian and outlawed. Later, during the middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February — Valentine’s Day — should be a day for romance. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.
In Great Britain, Valentine’s Day began to be popularly celebrated around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one’s feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine’s Day greetings. Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began to sell the first mass-produced valentines in America.
According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine’s Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)
Approximately 85 percent of all valentines are purchased by women. In addition to the United States, Valentine’s Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia.
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine’s Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colourful pictures known as “scrap”.
Valentine’s Day Survival Guide
Plan Ahead
With a little advance planning, you can save yourself a lot of stress and ensure a fun and romantic Valentine’s Day–one where you won’t be stuck without a reservation or paying too much for a rush delivery of flowers. It goes without saying, but restaurants are flooded with reservation requests for that night, so book early at your favourite romantic spot, or at that hot new bistro. If you leave yourself a little more time, you can also find a more personal gift, a locket or a watch engraved with your lover’s initials or a special message. It doesn’t have to be about how much you spend, either: Putting a little time in can make a gift that is far more personal and meaningful than flowers, roses, candy, and even jewellery. Consider framing a photograph of the two of you, writing a silly love poem or making a scrapbook of photos and mementos of your relationship. Or just plan to make dinner at home, complete with champagne and candlelight; find recipes for chocolate fondue (great for sharing!) Finally, you don’t have to wait for Valentine’s Day to be romantic–give small gifts, flowers or leave notes in the days leading up to the holiday and you’ll distinguish yourself from all those bouquets sent to the office on the 14th.
Big Spender
According to the National Retail Federation, American consumers spend more than $30 million per year on Valentine’s Day. Though flowers, candy and chocolate are among the most common (and relatively inexpensive) gifts, and the true spirit of the holiday is not about how much money you spend, some of you may decide you want to shell out a little bit more for a gift–after all, nothing is too good for that special someone. For those with unlimited means–a jet? A private island? An unusual find, such as an antique piece of jewellery, a vintage designer dress or jacket or a first-edition book, may be worth that extra money (and time) for the impact it makes. As for jewellery, diamonds are always in style for women, even if they’re not going on a certain finger. Alternatively, book a long weekend away at a secluded country inn, or some fabulously exotic locale.
Last Minute
Fortunately for procrastinators, the old stand-bys–flowers, candy, or at the very least a card–are all available until almost the very last minute. Those don’t have to be your only options, however; you can pull out a successful Valentine’s Day with just a bit more effort in the home stretch. Although the restaurants may be booked, and you might not have the time or energy to cook, you can pull together a romantic night at home just by ordering in your favourite takeout, lighting some candles and putting on some music.
Speechless!! St. Valentine’s Day Quotations!!
Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies. ~ Aristotle
Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage. ~ Lao Tzu
Age does not protect you from love. But love, to some extent, protects you from age. ~ Anais Nin
Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward in the same direction. ~ Antoine de Saint-Exupery
The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart. ~ Helen Keller
Love does not dominate; it cultivates. ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place. ~ Zora Neale Hurston
Love is life. All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love. Everything is, everything exists, only because I love. ~ Leo Tolstoy