A day of cute couples and sad singles. Valentine’s Day has become a day to exchange chocolate and flowers; however, this romantic day hasn’t always been this way.

You might have heard of St. Valentine the patron saint of lovers. Not much is known about him or rather them. In history there have been multiple St. Valentines and which one the holiday actually celebrates has yet to be decided. 

The two most probable of the Valentines are two men in Rome.

In third century Rome, there was a priest who defied Emperor Claudius II’s ban on marriage. Claudius II believed that marriage had nothing to do with love and was distracting for his soldiers so he completely outlawed it. Valentine (the priest) disagreed and in turn began to illicitly wed couples. He eventually was caught and executed. 

The second Valentine also illegally helped people in Rome. In this case Christians who were attempting to escape prison. After his inevitable capture, he would send letters out signing them “Your Valentine.” 

It wasn’t until the 1300s when February 14th became known as “Valentine’s Day” and a century later during the Middle Ages it became a romantic holiday about love and devotion. 

Contemporarily, it’s just a way for Hallmark to sell their cards and Lint to sell their chocolates.