Valentine is buried in Madrid: the secret that few know

Each February 14thmillions of people around the world celebrate Valentine’s Day and, although each country lives it differently, this day is known for buying gifts and love notes along with sweets or bouquets of flowers. What many do not know is the story behind Valentine’s Day and the reason for its celebration.

In the history of Valentine’s Day there are several certainties and a few other unknowns. One true fact: valentine existed. An unknown: where are his remains? There are several Catholic temples that reliably claim to host them, and one of them is the church of San Anton, in Madrid.

According to legend, the Catholic martyr was beheaded for disobeying Emperor Claudius II, who made the decision to prohibit the marriage of young people because he understood that single people fought better. The priest, to whom we pay homage today every February 14, risked his life and until it was discovered and sentenced to death by beheadingaccording to the version of the website specializing in religious issues aciprensa.com.

But, what became of his remains? We tell you.

Where is Valentine buried?

After being sentenced to death, it is said that his bones were scattered all over the world. National Geographic magazine states that, today, a dublin church shows valentine’s heart; in Rome, a basilica exhibits the supposed skull of the priest; in a glasgow friary its skeleton is found; in a prague basilica there is the bone that belonged to his shoulder and, in Spain, in the Church of San Anton in Madridthe supposed remains of Valentine are found inside a glass room.

How the remains of Valentine arrived in Spain

According to legend, at the end of the 18th century, the pope gave part of the bones (skull, two femurs and other remains) Valentine’s Day to King Charles IVwho hid them on Calle Hortaleza in Madrid until 1984. This is explained by Manu Garcia del Moral, writer of the book ‘Secretos de Madrid’ (2018).

As of that same year, the bones that, supposedly, were part of Saint Valentine are found in the Church of San Anton on the right side of the parish and inside a glass cubicle. In fact, if you visit the temple, you can see a small sarcophagus that indicates that what is inside are the remains of the saint.

who was valentine

To meet the priest who gives this festival its name, you have to travel to 2nd century in Romemoment in which Emperor Claudius II decided to ban the marriage among young people. He believed that single men, having no family and no emotional bond, would make better warriors. But Saint Valentine, the protagonist of Valentine’s Day that we continue to honor today, rebelled and risked his life in order to unite marriage between Roman soldiers and their wives, according to the Dictionary of Christianity.

But nevertheless, the priest was discovered and brought before the emperor to be sentenced to death by decapitation. The legend tells that while in jail he met the jailer’s blind daughter, with whom he fell in love. The legend goes one step further: on February 14, 269, after being beheaded and dying, the young got his sight back.