We all know there was a man called Valentine, who later became a saint and to whom we owe the special day honouring love – the Valentine’s Day. But how many of us know exactly who the man was and why he is connected with the day? There are numerous legends about the life and death of saint Valentine, however, most of them are only myths invented over hundreds of years. Unfortunately, the true history of saint Valentine was not as colourful as it is presented in the legends.
First of all, it is not quite clear whether there was only one or maybe more Christian martyrs called Valentine, as the name was relatively popular at that time. The Catholic Encyclopaedia speaks of three saints called Valentine, however non of them was linked with romance. We still do not know why this holiday is commemorated on 14 February and whether the Christian martyr had any relations to this day.
One of the three saints, and the most famous, was the man called Valentine who lived in Rome when the country was under the reign of Emperor Claudius II. The legend goes that the emperor was a very strict ruler constantly involved in battles and wars. That is why, he needed soldiers to fight for him. However, the men of the country were not willing to go and fight because they did not want to leave their families. Consequently, the hard-hearted ruler banned the citizens from engagements and marriages. The only hope for the people was a priest called Valentine, who, even at the cost of his own life, secretly arranged marriages. Soon, the emperor found out about Valentine’s defiance. On February 14, about 270 AD., Valentine was put to death.
Unfortunately, we are not certain if Saint Valentine of Rome was the one to whom we owe the holiday. Nevertheless, the day is named after one of the three saint Valentines and established in 500 AD. by Pope Gelasius. Though, it was as soon as in the fourteenth century when the saint started to become connected with love. Years later, in 1969 the day 14 February was deleted from the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints and downgraded to local or national calendars. That would be it as for the facts about saint Valentine. The rest are just legend or at least a mixture if folklore and the truth.