Holidays Information

The History And Origin Of Valentines Day


The oldest Valentine card still in existence was sent in 1415 by Charles Duke of Orleans, at the time a prisoner in the Tower of London, to his wife. The Duke's Valentine's card is now preserved and displayed in the British Museum.

However, the origins of Valentine's Day lie in ancient Rome. Over the years the ever expanding Roman empire became more difficult to police and there was an increasing shortage of soldiers. Believing that married men were too attached to their families and unlikely to sign up for active service, Emperor Claudius II banned marriage, thinking this would increase the number of quality recruits.

The story goes that a Christian priest by the name of Valentine, seeing the unhappiness and trauma that resulted, secretly married couples in defiance of the new law.

It wasn't long before Emperor Claudius found out about Valentine's actions and the priest was imprisoned and eventually executed on February 14, 270.

Whilst in prison, Valentine was befriended by his jailer, a character called Asterius. Asterius had a blind daughter and the jailer asked Valentine to cure her, which he supposedly did. Shortly before his execution, Valentine asked for writing implements and signed a farewell message to the jailer's daughter "From your Valentine", a phrase that has lived on, much to the delight of modern day florists, rose growers and card companies!

Author: Tony Luck runs a personalized gifts site that specializes, among other things, in personalized ceramics - greeting cards, commemorative plates and tankards.


MORE RESOURCES:

FASTSIGNS(R) News: Greet the Holidays With Signs and Graphics
MarketWatch - Nov 21, 2008
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Wall Street Journal - Nov 19, 2008
Associated Press Last year on Black Friday, the kickoff of the holiday shopping season, the retailer didn't cut prices on its most expensive, ...
Kohl's to offer wider price cuts for holidays- WSJ Reuters
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WCTV - Daytona Beach News-Journal
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Royal Oak parade kicks off holidays
DetNews.com, MI - 32 minutes ago
ROYAL OAK -- Unicycles, rock bands and Santa Claus were highlights of the seventh annual Holiday Parade on a chilly but sunny Saturday morning. "It is cold. ...


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Newsday, NY - 16 hours ago
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Holidays Won’t Bring Much Cheer for Retailers
Wall Street Journal Blogs, NY - Nov 21, 2008
The low point coming squarely within the holiday season will mean a particularly brutal period for retailers, a new Conference Board survey shows. ...


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MarketWatch - Nov 21, 2008
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Wii shortages during the holiday season are nothing new, having occurred for the past two years, but nevertheless the trend is expected to continue again ...


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Detroit Free Press, United States - 4 hours ago
Give the gift of food or time to those who are in need. Please see the list below for Detroit area organizations that are in need of support. ...


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San Jose Mercury News,  USA - 23 hours ago
The traditions of the Thanksgiving holiday go back centuries. However, its roots are not only in the big, juicy turkeys we serve each year; the holiday's ...

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