How Do I Research Thee? Let me count the ways…

The returns on searches on the history of Valentine’s Day reflect the motley mix of historical trivia that may or may not contribute to the practices surrounding this mid February holiday. A holiday so varied in its potential origins ought to make for an interesting subject of web-based study.

For my research on Valentine’s Day, I attempted to find the most obscure and questionable sources possible. While looking through history’s grocery checkout lane magazine racks, rather than its bookshelves, I sought to find out just how reckless cyberspace had become with the democratization of knowledge. To my surprise, I found that most of my sources were remarkably consistent. After reading through a variety of sources, and clicking on O’s in the double digits in Google search results, I was disappointed not to have found anything especially juicy. The sites mostly fell in line with more commonly used sources (Wikipedia) which I checked after doing my initial research. This illuminating fact is either troubling as sites like Wikipedia steadily become the gold standard for historical research on the web is, or reassuring in the fact that wildly imaginative interpretations (or complete fabrications) of history were difficult to locate. What follows is my mostly tame findings on Valentine’s day history.

With love often comes sacrifice.

Many recognize modern Valentine’s Day connection to ancient civilizations, and one site proclaims that the “true origin” of Valentine’s Day stems from the ancient Roman tradition of Luprecalia. The festival was meant to honor the wolf that nursed Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, in their infanthood. The Lupercalia grew into a festival of spirit cleansing and fertility.

Among the many sacred rites and practices of the festival, young men sacrificed dogs and goats. Following the ritual sacrifice, young men ran through the streets nude, slapping women with goat hides to rid them of evil spirits and infertility.

Surprisingly, ancient civilizations may be the ones to thank for the steaminess associated with this day. Eight centuries before Valentine’s Day came to be known as it is today, the Romans had adopted a rather unusual practice to commemorate the rites of passage from young men to adult. As part of the Lupercalia festivities, young men would draw the names of teen-aged girls from a box. The “lucky” winners would then be claimed by the young men as their, politely put, concubines for the year.

Ruining all the Fun

It was only a matter of time until the Catholic Church crashed the party. The holiday is another example of how the Catholic Church re-appropriated pagan traditions, effectively co-opting them into Church-related activities.

The mid-February holiday of Lupercalia coincided with a strange coincidence in Church history. Catholic records identify three separate St. Valentine’s. One was a priest in Rome, another a bishop in Terni, and a third St. Valentine who is buried in Africa. According to this site, all three died on the very same day: February 14th. It seemed only appropriate then that the day would come to honor those saints.

The most beloved of these St. Valentines was the 3rd century priest who defied the then emperor Claudius’s ban on marriages meant to encourage single men to join the army. His defiance earned him a jail sentence, but also a great deal of notoriety and admiration from the public. One of his admirers, the prison guards daughter, managed to capture his heart. On the day he was to be executed, he left her a signed, “Love from your Valentine.” Alternative perspectives maintain that Valentine was executed for aiding Christians in escaping Roman jails where they were persecuted.

In case anyone has come to doubt the divine element of Valentine’s Day, a new Valentine has arrived as a clear sign.

True (Commercial) Love

But we all know Valentine’s Day has nothing to do with religion, whether monotheistic or pagan in orientation. Its about the stuff.

Among the holiday’s essentials, is the ubiquitous Valentine’s Day card, replete with pre-programmed yet heartfelt messages. The amorous Charles the Duke of Orleans is recognized as having sent the first Valentine’s Day card in 1415. Imprisoned in the Tower of London after the Battle of Agincourt, the Duke passed his days composing poetry for his beloved. As he let his heart bleed on to each page, he came to compose many letters, which would later come to be regarded as the first Valentine’s cards.

Also, changes in the indispensable candy hearts have reflected the times. The hearts were once far more penetrating than the overly impersonal and no nonsense “Be Mine” of today. Instead of simple hearts, the candy used to be shaped as baseballs, horseshoes and postcards. The larger surfaces allowed for more touching (or freakish) messages like “Please send a lock of your hair by return mail.”

Finally, if things didn’t work out this year, don’t fret. The candies are supposed to stay fresh for at least 5 years. So, stock up for, oh say (hopefully) the rest of your life.

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