by Carole Somerville

Created on: January 10, 2010

Who is St. Valentine? Legends point to a number of possibilities and what becomes apparent when researching into the origins of Valentine's Day is that February seems to have been a month of celebrating love all over the world, since ancient times.

Who Was Valentine? ~

Some say Valentine was a priest who served in Rome around 270AD. Romans would flock to the temple which was situated close to Claudius' palace, to hear his words. Many wars broke out in the Roman Empire and after fighting for years and years, many of the Romans, who were married men, did not want to leave their families and were unwilling to fight. The Emperor solved this problem by decreeing that no marriages should be celebrated and all engagements should be broken immediately.

When Valentine heard of this, he was against it. A young couple came to his temple and he secretly united them in marriage. Word got round and more young couples came to Valentine to be quietly married. Valentine was the friend of all lovers in Rome.

The Origins of St. Valentine's Day ~

Eventually Claudius heard of these secret marriages and commanded his soldiers to cast Valentine into a dungeon. The priest was dragged from the temple and despite many people pleading for his release, Claudius refused and Valentine died in the dungeon. Other legends speak of him having been beaten to death with clubs before having his head cut off. Valentine was buried in the Church of St Praxedes in the year 270 AD, on February 14th.

Whilst Valentine was in prison, some say he fell in love with his jailer's blind daughter. His love for her, along with his great faith, managed to miraculously heal her blindness before his death. His farewell message to her was "From your Valentine."

Other Catholic St. Valentines ~

According to the Catholic Encyclopaedia, there are at least three St. Valentines: one being a priest in Rome, another a bishop of Interamna and another who lived and died in Africa. While many believe Valentine's Day is celebrated on the 14th to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's burial, others think the Christian Church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's day in the middle of February in an attempt to "Christianise" celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival.

Ancient Roman Festivals in February ~

The ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia was celebrated on 15th February when Luperci priests would gather at the cave of Lupercal where, according to legend, Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, had been nursed

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>