At the time that Emperor Claudius 2 reigned over Rome, there was much disarray and fighting in the country. Claudius needed many soldiers for his legion but found that the young men were preoccupied with their new families and wives and were apprehensive to join the Roman Army. In a rage, he decided to cancel all marriages and engagements in Rome.

There was a priest called Saint Valentine living in Rome during this period, who along with Saint Marius helped young Christians secretly coalesce their unions before God – in the act of marriage. Word of these secret meetings reached the authorities and St Valentine was taken to a Prefect of Rome where he was sentenced to death by being brutally beaten with clubs and then beheaded.

While he was waiting for his execution, St Valentine was locked in a tower in the city.
Many young couples came to the bottom of the citadel and threw flowers and notes up to the priest who had blessed them with the joy of marriage. The guard's daughter was one of the many who admired St Valentine for his actions and visited him regularly in his cell where they would spend hours conversing. It is believed that on the day of his execution, 14 February 269AD, St Valentine left a note of thanks to the girl and signed it “Love from your Valentine”.

To do away with the pagan aspect of the Feast of Lupercalia, priests of the Christian church decided to replace the names of girls in the jars with the names of Saints. They chose the name of St Valentine to replace the name of the feast. And so arose Valentine's Day.