• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

Who The Heck Is St. Valentine, Anyway?

February 10, 2013 by Samantha Parent Walravens Leave a Comment

As we were cutting out paper hearts and sprinkling glitter on my daughter’s Valentine’s Day cards this week, she stopped and asked me why we celebrate this “day of love” each year.  I didn’t have an answer.

What is the history of Valentine’s Day? Who was the fellow we call St. Valentine, and why do we send cards in his honor? After some digging, this is what I discovered:

Who Was St. Valentine?

According to History.com, in 3rd Century Rome, Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, so he outlawed marriage for young males. Valentine, a Roman priest, defied this decree and continued to perform marriages in secret for young lovers. When the Emperor discovered his betrayal, Valentine was put to death on February 14, 278 A.D.

Valentine actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself. Legend has it that before he was executed, he left a farewell note for the jailer’s daughter, who had become his friend, and signed it “From Your Valentine.”

The Pagan Festival of Lupercalia

In ancient Rome, February 13-15 was celebrated as a pagan fertility festival called Lupercalia. During this time, a young man would draw the name of a young woman in a lottery and keep her as a sexual companion for the year. When Rome became Christian, Pope Gelasius replaced Lupercalia with St. Valentine’s Day. The first Christian Valentine’s Day was celebrated on February 14 in 496 A.D.

Valentine’s Day and Romantic Love

It was a common belief in Europe in the Middle Ages that February 14 was the day when mating birds chose their partners. Thus mid-February became a time dedicated to love, and people observed it by writing love letters and sending small gifts to their beloved.

In 1386 A.D. Geoffrey Chaucer wrote his “Parlement of Foules” (or “Parliament of Fowls”), which is considered to be the first linking of Valentine’s Day to romantic love. Celebrating the engagement of Richard II of England and Anne of Bohemia, Chaucer wrote: “For this was on St. Valentine’s Day/ When every fowl cometh there to choose his mate.”

On Valentine’s Day in 1400, the High Court of Love was opened in Paris to deal with affairs of the heart: marriage contracts, divorces, infidelity, and beaten spouses. In 1415 Charles, the Duke of Orleans, wrote the first recorded Valentine’s note to his beloved, while imprisoned in the Tower of London after his capture in the Battle of Agincourt.

Valentine’s Cards Go Mainstream

In the mid-1700s, the passing of love notes became popular in England, a precursor to the Valentine’s cards that we know today. Early cards were hand made out of paper and lace. In 1797, the Young Man’s Valentine Writer was published, which suggested poems and messages to be used in these cards. As postal services became more affordable, the anonymous Valentine’s Day card became possible.

During the Civil War in the U.S. (1861-65), Valentine cards often depicted sweethearts parting, or a tent with flaps that opened to reveal a soldier. These were known as “windows.” After the war, the “window” depicted a church door opening to reveal a bridge and groom.

In 1840, Esther A. Howland, a student at Mount Holyoke College, mass-produced the first American commercial Valentines. The first year in business brought Howland $5,000.00 in sales (an enormous sum at that time). Larger companies followed her lead almost immediately.  In 1913 Hallmark Cards produced their first Valentine.

Valentine’s Day Becomes a Multi-Billion Dollar Business

Today, the commercialization of the holiday continues. Valentine’s Day generates an estimated $14.7 billion in retail sales in the United States. An estimated 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards will be sent worldwide this year, making it the second most card-heavy celebration after Christmas.

And that, my dear daughter, is why we celebrate this “day of love” each year.

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Celebrate, Holidays, Valentine's Day

About Samantha Parent Walravens

Samantha Parent Walravens, the "Torn" Mom. Samantha is a journalist, author, and mother of four children. She is conflicted on a daily basis between the demands of motherhood and career, and is on a search for the elusive “work-life balance” (please let her know if you’ve found it!) Samantha is the author and editor of the anthology, TORN: True Stories of Kids, Career & the Conflict of Modern Motherhood, and is a frequent speaker about work-life issues. She has been a guest on the Today Show and NPR News and has written for numerous publications including Salon.com, the Huffington Post, Healthy Women, Urban Baby, Yahoo! and PC World. When not writing or driving her kids to countless activities, she can be found hiking the hills of Marin County, California, where she lives with her husband and children.

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Search

ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

Coconut Oil

Why Coconut Oil Is So Good For Pregnant & Nursing Mothers

“Coconut oil contains large amounts of lauric acid, a … [Read More...] about Why Coconut Oil Is So Good For Pregnant & Nursing Mothers

Must Have

winter

Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

"It's beginning to look  a lot like Christmas..." The … [Read More...] about Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

Did you know?

Calories Burned Sitting in a Steam Sauna

The Calories Burned Sitting in a Steam Sauna for 15 Minutes

How Soon After a C-Section Can I Get Pregnant Again?

Juice Vs. Concentrate

Juice Vs. Concentrate

cooking with young children

Cooking With Young Children

Cover a Pork Roast

Should You Cover a Pork Roast & Add Liquid When Baking?

what causes baby hiccups

What Causes Baby Hiccups?

Signs That Your Toddler Has Been Touched Inappropriately

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2021 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.