Facts about Valentine’s Day

We all think we know about Valentine’s Day – it’s a day of chocolate, cards and spoiling your special someone but the origins of the day goes a lot deeper than that. Here’s everything you need to know about St Valentine and why it became synonymous with love.

St Valentine wasn’t just one person

Did you know there are actually two St Valentines? There’s St Valentine of Rome and St Valentine of Terni – both of them were martyred, but it’s not sure which of them is the inspiration for Valentine’s Day. St Valentine of Rome was a priest who defied Emperor Claudius II’s ban on soldiers getting married, conducting ceremonies in secret, so many believe the day is associated with him but there’s nothing to say for sure.

Valentine’s Day isn’t just a Roman thing – it’s Pagan

Valentine’s Day, like most of our holidays, has connections to Paganism. It originated as a festival of fertility that was celebrated on 15^th February. Thankfully, though we kept a festival in the month of February, we left the actual celebrations behind. Pagans would celebrate the day by sacrificing animals and gently slapping each other with goat hides dipped in blood. Supposedly, this helped with fertility.

It became a festival of love in the 1300s

Valentine’s Day became part of the Christian calendar when Pope Gelasius outlawed the Pagan celebration that came before it. However, it wasn’t until the 1300s that it became associated with romance and moved to 14^th February. For that, we can thank Chaucer who wrote a poem in 1375 which references St Valentine’s Day.

What about Cupid?

We know the stories of Cupid’s bow helping you fall in love but did you know that Cupid is older than Valentine’s Day? Cupid can be traced back to the ancient Greek myth of Eros, the God of Love. Over time, he was adopted by the Romans and became Cupid and then in around the 19^th century, he became associated with Valentine’s Day.

Valentine’s messages have been around for centuries

According to historians, the oldest Valentine’s message on record dates back to 1415. It was written by the Duke of Orleans who wrote a love note to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London. A section of the letter read: I am already sick of love, my very gentle Valentine.”

Mass produced Valentine’s cards began in the 1840s

Valentine’s Day as we know it began in the 17^th century when people started exchanging cards between lovers and friends. The first mass produced Valentine’s cards were introduced in the 1840s in America – Esther A Howland is credited with commercialising the holiday by selling romantic cards with lace and ribbons on.

Giving flowers also began in the 17^th century

Giving flowers, specifically a rose was popularised by Lady Montagu, the wife of a British ambassador to Turkey. Though it is thought that she misunderstood the idea of “flower language” where specific flowers represent feelings and messages. But after her mistake, red roses became linked with romance.

Cadbury invented Valentine’s chocolates

You didn’t think it would be anyone else did you? Richard Cadbury, son of the Cadbury founder, John, started packaging chocolates in fancy boxes to increase sales. He introduced the first heart shaped box of chocolates for Valentine’s Day back in 1861.

XOXO has been used to sign off letters for longer than you think

The origins of XOXO stem from the Middle Ages – yep, that’s right, though it didn’t always mean hugs and kisses. Back then the X stood for a Christian cross and the O was an oath. It later came to mean sealed with a kiss and now is more commonly thought of as hugs and kisses.