How did you think Valentine’s Day went down? Did you think it was originally about lovey dovey and heart chocolate boxes? You may be shocked at how it first started out.

According to the History channel, Valentine’s day started out as a Christian and Roman tradition. On a feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and Valentinus. Valentine was a priest who was in the third century of Rome. He performed marriages for young lovers in secret for quite a while. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, an emperor named Claudius ordered that he be put to death. In which he was brutally beheaded.

Some other people believe that Saint valentine may have been killed for trying to help Christians escape the harsh Roman prisons from back then, where they were very often beaten and tortured. Roman prisons were really bad back then.

According to one legend, when Valentine was imprisoned he actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young beautiful girl. It was more than likely to be his jailer’s daughter, who visited him during his confinement. Before Valentine’s death. Allegedly, Valentine wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today.

During the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of the birds’ mating season, in which later was added to the idea that the middle of Valentine’s Day is a day for romance, and a day for others to express their feelings of love and happiness.

There is another myth that includes cupid. According to the Greek Archaic poets, Eros, the god of love, was a handsome immortal who played with the emotions of Gods and men, using the infamous bow and arrows to provoke love and leaden ones to spread peace. It wasn’t until the Hellenistic period that cupid began to be portrayed as the mischievous, chubby child he would become on the common Valentine’s Day cards. According to the History channel.

According to NPR, us Americans probably most likely began giving out hand-made valentines day cards in the early 1700s. But for others, In the middle of the 18th, it was common for friends, family members, and or lovers to exchange small gifts of affection or handwritten notes, and by the early 1900’s, printed cards began to replace written letters due to the improvements in printing technology.

Already-made cards were an easy way for people to buy from the store and to save time from writing a bunch, then the increase in the popularity of sending Valentine’s Day greetings grew. The current valentine’s day is about giving gifts to your significant lover, a friend, or a family member. It includes such as chocolates, stuffed bears, cards, flowers, and you name it! I think this day is a very cute thing to do with people. I guess the infamous pink and red colors were meant for a sign of love and attraction.