1. St. Valentine isn't just one person. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, “At least three different Saint Valentines, all of them martyrs, are mentioned in the early martyrologies under the date of 14 February.” One was a priest in Rome, the second one was a bishop of Interamna (now Terni, Italy) and the third St. Valentine was a martyr in the Roman province of Africa.
2. Candy hearts were originally medical lozenges. Sweethearts trace their lineage to Massachusetts in the 1860s. At the time, lozenges were a popular way to deliver medicine, but they were exhausting to produce. A shrewd Boston pharmacist, Oliver Chase, invented a machine that streamlined the process by rolling the candy concoction and pressing it into discs.
3. The first valentine was sent in the 15th century. The oldest record of a valentine being sent, according to History.com, was a poem written by a French medieval duke named Charles to his wife in 1415. Charles penned this sweet note to his lover while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London at just 21 years old.
4. Valentine's Day started with the Romans. Valentine's Day, also called St. Valentine's Day, holiday (February 14) when lovers express their affection with greetings and gifts. Given their similarities, it has been suggested that the holiday has origins in the Roman festival of Lupercalia, held in mid-February.