St. Valentine

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The patron saint of lovers, beekeepers, and people with epilepsy

A vintage sepia-toned image of two women embracing.

Illustrated 1910 Valentine card showing Cupid with wings and a blue sash, gathering red heart shapes from a pine tree into a basket. Text reads If you'd only be my Valentine.

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Died:: 3rd century, Rome

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St. Valentine

Q: What is the feast day of St. Valentine?

The feast day of St. Valentine is celebrated on February 14. Commonly known as Valentine’s Day , a lovers’ festival, it is almost globally celebrated through the exchange of greetings, cards , flowers, and other gifts expressing love and affection. However, it did not come to be celebrated as a day of romance until about the 14th century. Many theories claim suggest that at the end of the 5th century, Pope Gelasius I forbid the celebration of the Roman spring festival Lupercalia and replaced it with St. Valentine’s Day, but the true origin of the holiday is vague at best.

Q: What is St. Valentine the patron saint of?

St. Valentine is the patron saint of lovers, beekeepers , and people with epilepsy . His feast day is celebrated on February 14 and is widely known as a lovers’ festival .

Q: Why is St. Valentine associated with love?

Various legends give different accounts of St. Valentine’s life and why he is associated with love . According to one story, St. Valentine was martyred in Rome in the 3rd century by Claudius II Gothicus during the emperor’s persecution of Christians . While he was imprisoned and awaiting execution, he is said to have signed a letter “from your Valentine” to his jailer’s daughter, whom he had befriended and healed from blindness . Another legend says that he defied the emperor’s orders and secretly married couples to spare the husbands from being conscripted to serve in war.

Q: What was St. Valentine known for?

St. Valentine is best known as the patron saint of lovers. His feast day (February 14) is celebrated in many parts of the world as a lovers’ festival during which it is customary to give cards known as valentines . In Roman Catholic tradition, St. Valentine is the name of one or two legendary Roman Christian martyrs whose lives seem to have a historical basis. Although Valentine was removed from the General Roman Calendar in 1969 because of the lack of reliable information about him,the church continues to recognize him as a saint .

Q: Where are St. Valentine’s relics?

Numerous churches claim to possess St. Valentine’s relics . These include his skull at the Basilica di Santa Maria in Cosmedin in Rome , a shoulder blade at the Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul in Prague , a vessel tinged with his blood at the Whitefriar Street Church in Dublin , and relics kept inside a wax effigy in Old St. Ferdinand Shrine in Florissant, Missouri .

Christian martyr

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Last updated

Sep. 24, 2026 •History

What is the feast day of St. Valentine?

What is St. Valentine the patron saint of?

Why is St. Valentine associated with love?

What was St. Valentine known for?

Where are St. Valentine’s relics?

St. Valentine (died 3rd century, Rome; feast day February 14) was the name of one or two legendary Christian martyrs whose lives seem to have a historical basis. Although the Roman Catholic Church continues to recognize St. Valentine as a saint, he was removed from the General Roman Calendar in 1969 because of the lack of reliable information about him. He is the patron saint of lovers, people with epilepsy, and beekeepers.

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Who was St. Valentine?

By some accounts, St. Valentine was a Roman priest and physician who was martyred during the persecution of Christians by the emperor Claudius II Gothicus about 270 ce. He was buried on the Via Flaminia, and Pope Julius I reportedly built a basilica over his grave.

Other narratives identify him as the bishop of Terni, Italy, who was martyred, apparently also in Rome, and whose relics were later taken to Terni. It is possible these are different versions of the same original account and refer to only one person.

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Where are St. Valentine’s relics?

Numerous churches around the world claim to be in possession of the saint’s relics. These include his skull on display in a glass reliquary at the Basilica di Santa Maria in Cosmedin in Rome, a shoulder blade housed at the Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul in Prague (after having been discovered in the church’s basement in 2002), a vessel tinged with his blood in addition to several other artifacts at the Whitefriar Street Church in Dublin, and relics kept inside a wax effigy of the saint situated in front of the altar of Old St. Ferdinand Shrine in Florissant, Missouri.

The legend of St. Valentine

According to legend, St. Valentine signed a letter “from your Valentine” to his jailer’s daughter, whom he had befriended and healed from blindness. Another common legend states that he defied the emperor’s orders and secretly married couples to spare the husbands from being conscripted to serve in war.

Valentine’s Day as a lovers’ festival dates at least from the 14th century. The tradition of giving cards on Valentine’s Day began in the 18th century.

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