You may think that Valentines Day is a lovely time to share with your loved one. (Or loved ones, whatever tickles your fancy.) But who was this Valentine bloke, and was he some kind of Romeo from centuries long ago?
The short answer is no. In fact he was a holy priest in Rome, who helped young lovers marry against the will of the reigning emperor Claudius II. When Claudius decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. When Valentine was caught performing marriages in secret, the emperor sentenced him to be beaten with clubs, and afterwards –beheaded. The happy event took place on February 14, around the year 270. Nice. How do you get from what is, lets face it, a pretty grizzly execution, to dopey couples staring love struck into each others eyes?
Ironically, I know. Mid February was traditionally the time of the Lupercian festival, an ode to the God of fertility and a celebration of sensual pleasure, a time to meet and court a prospective mate. In AD 496, the Pope of the time outlawed the pagan festival, but replaced it with a similar celebration that he deemed morally suitable. Therefore he needed a "lovers" saint to replace the pagan deity Lupercus. The martyred Bishop Valentine was chosen as the patron saint of the new festival – because of his involvement in uniting young lovers, and also because before his execution, Valentine himself had fallen in love with his jailer's daughter. He signed his final note to her, "From Your Valentine", a phrase that has lasted until today.
Unfortunately for the Pope, people didn’t emulate the life of the saint as he hoped they would. Instead they latched onto the more romantic aspects of Saint Valentines life. While not immediately as popular as the more passionate pagan festival, eventually the concept of celebrating true love became known as Valentine's Day.
Luv Ya!
Miranda
Last updated: 29/04/2008
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You may think that Valentines Day is a lovely time to share with your loved one. (Or loved ones, whatever tickles your fancy.) But who was this Valentine bloke, and was he some kind of Romeo from centuries long ago?