A common legend of Saint Valentine says that he was a priest of Rome during the time when Christians were being persecuted. While under house arrest, Valentine mentioned his faith in Jesus to the Judge, Asterius, who, instead of condemning him, decided to put him to the test by asking him to restore the sight of the judge's adopted blind daughter.

Valentine prayed to God, laid his hands on the girl’s eyes and her vision was restored. The Judge was deeply moved and freed all the Christian inmates under his charge, after which he, his family, and his servants were baptised.

Unfortunately the story doesn´t end there. Valentine was later arrested again for continuing to preach the Christian gospel, and this time sent to the prefect in Rome, and appeared before the emperor Claudius II. Unable to remain quiet about his faith, he invited Claudius to embrace Christianity. But Claudius refused and Valentine was condemned to death, and executed on February 14th, 269.

So why the romantic associations with this day? There are two embellishments to the story that go some way to explaining this. The first is that, while a priest in Rome, Valentine made a practice of secretly conducting Christian weddings for couples, allowing the husband to avoid conscription into the pagan army. The story goes that in order to remind these men of their vows and God’s love, Saint Valentine is said to have cut hearts from parchment and given them to the couples. The second embellishment is that, prior to his execution, Saint Valentine wrote a note to Judge Asterius's daughter, and signed it "from your Valentine"!

But if you are In Wales it is altogether different. In Wales the day to send a romantic message to your loved one is not 14th February but 25th January, in memory of St Dwynwen. St Dwynwen was a Welsh princess from Brecon in the 4th century, who´s father, the King, had arranged for her to marry a prince, although she was in love with a local lad called Maelon Dafodrill.

She fled to the woods in floods of tears and begged for God's help. An angel appeared and gave her a potion to help her forget Maelon, which also happened to turn him into a block of ice! God then granted Dwynwen three wishes. She wished firstly for Maelon to be thawed out, secondly that God would help all true lovers, and thirdly that she would never marry. So she then became a nun, and set up a convent on the small Welsh island of Llanddwyn (see photo attached).

The picture shows saints Valentine and Dwynwen.