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who sent the first valentine's day card

The first known Valentine’s Day card is generally credited to Charles, Duke of Orleans , who sent a romantic poem to his wife in 1415 while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London after the Battle of Agincourt.

Quick Scoop: Who sent the first Valentine’s Day card?

  • The earliest recorded Valentine message comes from Charles, Duke of Orleans.
  • He wrote it to his wife, Bonne of Armagnac , on February 14, 1415.
  • It was more like a handwritten love poem than a modern printed card, but historians treat it as the first Valentine’s Day card.
  • The original manuscript is preserved today in the British Library in London.

A tiny bit of story

Captured at the Battle of Agincourt, the young French noble Charles was held in the Tower of London, far from home and his wife. On Valentine’s Day 1415, he expressed his feelings in verse, using “Valentine” as a term of endearment and helping cement the link between February 14 and romantic love that continues into 2026.

TL;DR:
The first known Valentine’s Day card was sent in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans , to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London.

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