The Feast of St Valentine’s Day, commemorated yearly on February 14th, has its origins in Christianity and is remembered as a day to honour the two Christian Martyrs, namely Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni.

The date of St Valentine’s Day, initiated by Pope Gelasius 1 in 496AD, was established to commemorate the death of Saint Valentine of Rome in 269AD. But it wasn’t until the 14th century that the day became synonymous with romance after the famous English poet Geoffrey Chaucer penned a poem about “Valentine’s Day”.

The day itself only evolved to have more of a commercial aspect connected to it in 18th Century England, when expressions of love such as presenting flowers, sweets and cards developed. Over time, symbolism such as the winged ancient Roman God Cupid, Hearts and Doves were attached to the feast day celebrations.

St Valentine of Terni was Martyred much earlier in 273AD, and interestingly, there were a number of other early Christian Martyrs, also named Valentine, whose exploits contributed to the Valentine’s Day legend. The Easter Orthodox Church notes July 6th as its St Valentines Day commemoration, as this was the historical date that Valentine of Rome was actually Martyred.

Other dates connected to the “Day of Love” actually belong to a number of other saints namely Saint Gregory’s Day (March 12th), St Vincent’s Day (February 22nd) and St Anthony’s Day (June 13th).

The facts, myth and folklore of St Valentine’s Day have now all culminated into the one specific day, February 14th, and at Villiers Hotel in Buckingham, you can be sure that romance will be front and centre of our Valentine’s Day packages and offerings.