I am tracking down Geoffrey Chaucer. His work is in the British Library. They must have created their website a very long time ago - it is bl.uk. Not a very descriptive or identifying name.
Geoffrey Chaucer wrote in the 1400s - this is hard work to read - it's "Old English". The idea of Valentine's Day as a day for lovers is thought to come from his Parliament of Fowls. He would have spelled it "The Parlement of Foules".
It describes a group of birds which gather together in the early spring to choose their mates for the year. It is humorous and philosophical in its exploration of the idea of love.
‘For this was on seynt Volantynys day / Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese his make.’
Birds in England do not mate in mid-February. They mate later - and it has been proposed by scholars that Chaucer was actually referring to the 3rd of May - when Valentine of Genoa, a bishop who died around AD307 was commemorated. There were quite a few Valentine martyrs in the 3rds century.
I found two stories on the earliest/oldest Valentine.
The first has the earliest surviving romantic Valentine missive written by Charles, Duke of Orleans while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London, after being captured by the English during the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Written to his wife Bonne of Armagnac, the love poem repeats phrases using "Valentine" as a term of endearment several times:
Je suis desja d'amour tanné Ma tres doulce Valentinée
This French prose translates to “I am already sick of love, My very gentle Valentine” in English. Sadly, the Duke’s wife died before receiving the words of love of her imprisoned husband and today his words reside in the British Library.
The next is a letter that might be called a valentine. It was written in 1477 by Margery Brews - and says 'my right well beloved Valentine'.
If I may skip ahead to curious and entertaining Valentine's Cards - here's a series on bored panda.com - they reference famous people - and are done by Ben Kling. I apologize that they start with Hitler, but after that they are great.
Please don't embargo my love Happy Valentine's Day - Fidel
Leon Trotsky Thinks you're Hotsky
Live without you? I Kant.
And the image today comes from a guard rail in Toronto - a wonderful little bit of graffiti for us to enjoy.
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