Love's Headache

Question: St. Valentine is the patron saint of love, marriage, beekeeping, and what medical condition?

Answer: Epilepsy

That’s right, the very same St. Valentine inextricably linked to all those heart-shaped boxes of chocolates and Hallmark cards every February 14 is also the patron saint of epilepsy. For centuries, people believed that the saint carried out miracle cures that healed young people of the condition—and many still do. Oratorio di Giorgio, a small chapel in Padua, Italy, continues to hold a religious ceremony every February 14th where children are given golden keys to ward off epilepsy.

Who was this St. Valentine?

Well, like the nature of love itself, the precise identity of the St. Valentine we associate with this romantic day is bit of a mystery. One reason for this is “Valentine” or “Valentinus” was a common name in ancient times. When it came time for baby naming, any variation of a Latin word meaning “worthy, strong, or powerful” was hard to beat. As a result, there are at least a dozen “Valentines” listed in the official Roman Catholic roster of saints.

But the likeliest candidate was an early Christian priest named Valentine from Terni, Italy. Rome at the time was ruled by the Emperor Claudius II, who was also known as Claudius the Cruel. Claudius felt that the reason for a decline in the ranks of the Roman army was due to men’s strong attachments to their wives. The best way to increase enlistments, he decided, was to ban all marriages and engagements.

Valentine recognized the cruelty and injustice of such a decree. He continued to perform marriage ceremonies for Christians and other Romans in secret—and in violation of Roman law. When the Emperor caught wind of it, he said Valentine was to be clubbed to death—and then his head was to be lopped off for good measure (Valentine’s skull is actually on display at the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome!).

Valentine’s skull is on display at the Basilica of Santa Maria—which travelers can visit during their free time to explore Rome on our Tuscany & Umbria: Rustic Beauty in the Italian Heartland adventure.

So, the probable “real” Saint Valentine of Terni died on February 14th, circa 270. Soon afterward, he was named a saint in recognition for his service in the name of love. Legend also has it that on the night before his execution, the future saint wrote a letter to his jailer's daughter and signed it, "Your Valentine." Probably not true, but nice to think it might be.

When did Valentine get a heart?

Valentine was now a saint, but it took another 200 years to get his own feast day. The story goes that on February 14th of somewhere between 496 and 492, Pope Gelasius I was deeply offended by the “un-Christian” behavior he observed in Rome. That’s not surprising, as the city would have been in the middle of an annual three-day festival called Lupercalia. Even after Constantine declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire, the pagan festival of Lupercalia remained wildly popular in Rome. Antics included bands of young Roman men running around the city—drunk and completely naked—and slapping young maidens with the hides of goats and dogs they had just sacrificed. The spanking part was supposed to boost the young women’s fertility, but it really sounds like an excuse for frat-boy behavior (really, are today’s college kids all that different? Yes, we would hope so).

Rather than banning Lupercalia outright, though, Pope Gelasius I thought it might be more prudent to replace the offending holiday with something more wholesome—which he did by declaring February 14th the Feast of St. Valentine.

As far as modern-day romantic Valentine’s celebrations, we have the medieval English poet Geoffrey Chaucer to thank. A poem he wrote around 1375 called “Parliament of Foules” refers to February 14th as the day birds (and we assume humans as well) come together to find a mate. By including the lines, “For this was sent on Seynt Valentyne’s day / Whan every foul cometh ther to choose his mate,” he pretty much invented the holiday we recognize today. It’s all there except the Hallmark cards—which began to be mass-produced with their not-very-Chaucer-like sentiments in 1913.

A few centuries after Chaucer, the baton was passed to Shakespeare, who made several Valentine’s Day references in his plays reflecting the occasion’s growing popularity.

In more recent times, the chocolate company Cadbury came up with the idea of offering their products in heart-shaped boxes in 1861—which proved to be hugely popular. Unfortunately, they neglected to patent their idea, so any dreams of sweet profits just melted away (the boxes may have been a little broken-hearted, too).

Like so many things, Valentine’s Day has gotten a little out of hand. Between the flowers, the chocolates, and the cards, Americans spend more than $14 billion on a day set aside to honor a martyred saint. Perhaps it can take on greater meaning if we just pause to think about Valentine’s role as the patron saint of epilepsy—and how this neurological condition still affects some 50 million people around the world. Or maybe focusing on Valentine’s role as the patron saint of beekeeping can take the sting out. But if all that doesn’t work, and romance isn’t in the cards for you, just be grateful that you won’t have to experience a Valentine’s Day like the one 26-year-old future President Theodore Roosevelt endured in 1884.

Worst Valentine’s Day Ever?

On February 14, 1884, Roosevelt was at work in the New York state legislature when he was summoned home. He arrived to find that his beloved mother, Mittie, had just succumbed to typhoid fever. Hours later, in the same house, Roosevelt’s wife of four years, Alice Lee, also died, succumbing to an inflammatory kidney disease. Just two days earlier, Alice Lee had given birth to the couple’s first daughter. The tragic events so devastated Roosevelt, he abandoned politics, left his infant daughter with his sister, and struck out for the Dakota territories for the next two years. Rough times indeed for the Rough Rider …

A few unusual ways Valentine’s Day is celebrated around the world:

• They pucker up in Serbia—Each year on Valentine’s Day, competitors lock lips in a “longest-kiss contest” that takes place on the Bridge of Love in Vrnjacka Banja, a small town in southern Serbia. You’ll have to kiss up to the judges if you hope to beat the current record of 112 minutes.
• They get along swimmingly in Thailand—At first glance, getting married on Valentine’s Day doesn’t sound so unusual, but these weddings take place underwater. Underwater weddings became an annual tradition in Thailand’s Trang province starting in 1996. If you plan on attending, be sure to pack the snorkel. No date? Don’t worry, there’s plenty of fish in the sea ...
• Tanks for the memories—Definitely not an annual Valentine’s Day tradition, but in 2020 a Russian soldier proposed to his unsuspecting girlfriend by positioning 16 T-72 tanks in the shape of a heart. She said yes.
• Who doesn’t like spooning?—On the island of Llanddwyn, just off the coast of Wales, forget about the flowers and cards. The proper way to woo someone on Valentine’s Day is giving them a lovespoon. In a tradition dating back to the 17th century, these ornately carved spoons made by young men as a token of love are sure to stir up romantic thoughts.
• What are you, an animal?—Many zoos around the world treat their captive guests with romantic themed treats on Valentine’s Day. The London zoo gives their squirrel monkeys burlap heart bags filled with mealworms. Yum! On the other hand, one Canadian zoo encouraged visitors to name bugs after their exes or someone who broke their heart before feeding them to the zoo’s insect-eating animals.

Explore Rome on our Tuscany & Umbria: Rustic Beauty in the Italian Heartland adventure or New! Immersion in Italy: Venice, Florence & Rome by Train.