Historical facts about Valentine's Day

Feb7,2024

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Saint Valentine himself is a figure shrouded in mystery, with various legends surrounding his life. One such legend suggests that he was a priest during the third century in Rome who defied Emperor Claudius II's ban on marriage for young men

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Saint Valentine

Valentine continued to perform marriages in secret and was ultimately executed for his defiance. Another account posits that Valentine was killed for attempting to help Christians escape from Roman prisons.

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Suicide or Execution?

By the Middle Ages, Valentine had become one of the most popular saints in England and France, and the day became associated with romantic love. 

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Romantic Love

The tradition of exchanging love messages on Valentine's Day dates back to the Middle Ages, with the oldest known valentine being a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London.

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Love letter

By the 17th century in Great Britain, it became common for friends and lovers to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes

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Love note

In the United States, the first mass-produced valentines were sold in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland, known as the "Mother of the Valentine."

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Mother of Valentine

Today, Valentine's Day is widely celebrated around the world, with millions of cards exchanged annually, making it the second largest card-sending holiday after Christmas.

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Happy Valentine's Day