The History of Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day - The How And Why?
By Tom Wolstenholme
Valentine's Day cards are one of the great expectations and
attractions of this special day. Such cards embody a very
wide range of emotions - traditional capricious, humorous,
charming, ornate, romantic, sensitive, and many many more.
Cards for Valentine's Day are invariably sent or given to
anyone considered a lover or a romantically inclined boyfriend
or girlfriend.
The tradition of Valentine's Day greeting cards dates back
to the middle ages. Some say it began with Charles Duke of
Orleans in 1415. He addressed a poem to his much loved spouse
while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following the
battle of Agincourt. This particular greeting card is a special
memoir and a part of the manuscript collection which can be
seen in the British Library.
But did the Saint Valentine have anything to do with Valentine's
Day? And who was he anyway? It is thought that he was most
probably a legend, however, there are in fact three Saints
who go by the name Valentine or Valentinius, each associated
with the 14th February. One was a priest, another a bishop,
yet all three were said to be martyred. One of the most popular
legends states that just before his beheading for refusing
to deny Christ, Valentine wrote a letter to his beloved which
he signed "From Your Valentine".
By the sixteenth century, the tradition of Saint Valentine's
Day greeting cards had really started to gain momentum. Handwritten
cards were then being elaborately decorated with laces, silk
or satin, flowers, gold leaf and even perfumed. Coloured paper
and watercolours were amongst the essential elements used
to create the greeting card. Also in those days ready-made
cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions
at a time when subtle emotions were the appropriate response
and direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged.
Paper Valentine cards have long been very popular in the
UK. Manufactured cards with images of Cupid and hearts were
even on sale at the end of the nineteenth century.
The most common one liner in these cards is "Be My Valentine".
Don't forget, a Valentine is 'a person' singled out as one's
sweetheart on Saint Valentine's Day.
In the age of electronic greetings there has been a real
revival of, and fascination for, handmade Valentine's Day
cards. Even though cards have also found their way into the
e-cards form, electronic Valentine cards that can be sent
and received virtually through the World Wide Web, such e-cards
are often frowned upon and thought by recipients to be the
result of the sender 'forgetting them' and using an e-card
as a last minute, better than nothing, option.
Whatever the form you use, a unique, sentimental handmade
card or a pre printed card with a personalised message, it
is the message the card carries that truly matters.
As Saint Valentine's Day approaches, there is even more to
consider these days, there is also the Valentine's gift, with
chocolates, flowers, fragrances and jewellery being the gifts
most readily received.
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