With Valentine’s Day around the corner, I decided to do some research into where this tradition comes from. Like many people, I already knew that the 14th February is the Feast of Saint Valentine, who was a Christian martyr. And I also knew that it is a (in England at least) traditional for people who are single to confess their feelings for someone on this day, or for couples to reaffirm their affection for each other.
But what I did not understand was how these two things were related? How was a man who has been dead for centuries linked in any way to the chocolates, hearts and love messages of today?