We all live and breathe love stories in our lives and with those around us. However, some love stories have more relevance in history than others. While some others were created in a writer’s head, they’ve stuck in people’s minds forever. Several love stories in history and literature are famous and will continue to be told through the ages. Here are some love and Valentine’s quotes for the upcoming February that you might want to check out.
Do you believe in true love? Do you believe in love at first sight? Do you believe in love lasting forever? I think that these love stories will renew or reinforce your faith in love…
Top 30 Most Famous Love Stories
1. Romeo and Juliet - a famous love story in literature
This is probably the most famous lovers in history. This couple has become a synonym for love itself. Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. And their love story is one of the most tragic love stories in history. The tale of two teenagers from two feuding families who fall in love at first sight and then marry, become true lovers and then risk it all for their love. To take your own life for your husband or wife is definitely a sign of true love. Their “untimely deaths” ultimately unite their feuding households.
Don’t miss the chance to read this great tragedy – “Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespear
2. Cleopatra and Mark Antony - a great love story in history
The true love story of Antony and Cleopatra is one of the most memorable, intriguing and moving of all times. The story of these two historical characters had later been dramatized by William Shakespeare and is still staged all over the world. The relationship of Antony and Cleopatra is a true test of love. They fell in love at first sight. The relationship between these two powerful people put the country of Egypt in a powerful position. But their love affair outraged the Romans who were wary of the growing powers of the Egyptians. Despite all the threats, Anthony and Cleopatra got married. It is said that while fighting a battle against Romans, Antony got false news of Cleopatra’s death. Shattered, he fell on his sword. When Cleopatra learned about Antony ‘s death, she was shocked. And she took her own life. Great love demands great sacrifices.
If you want to learn more about this love story, you can read a famous tragedy – “Antony and Cleopatra” by William Shakespeare.
3. Lancelot and Guinevere - a love story of Arthurian Legend
The tragic love story of Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere is probably one of the best-known stories of Arthurian Legend. Lancelot fell in love with Queen Guinevere, King Arthur’s wife. Their love grew slowly, as Guinevere kept Lancelot away from her. Eventually, however, her love and passion overpowered her and the pair became lovers. One night, Sir Agravain and Sir Modred, King Arthur’s nephew, led a band of 12 knights to Guinevere’s chamber where they burst in upon the lovers. Discovered, Sir Lancelot made a fighting escape, but poor Guinevere was not so lucky. She was seized and condemned to burn to death for her adultery. Fear not. Sir Lancelot returned several days later to rescue his beloved Guinevere from the fire. This whole sad affair divided the Knights of the Round Table and weakened Arthur’s kingdom. Poor Lancelot ended his days as a lowly hermit and Guinevere became a nun at Amesbury where she died.
If you want to learn more about this famous love story, you can watch this movie – “Lancelot and Guinevere”
4. Tristan and Isolde - a chivalric romance retold since the 12th century
The tragic love story of Tristan and Isolde has been told and retold through various stories and manuscripts. It takes place during medieval times during the reign of King Arthur. Isolde of Ireland was the daughter of the King of Ireland. She was betrothed to King Mark of Cornwall. King Mark sent his nephew, Tristan, to Ireland to escort Isolde back to Cornwall. During the voyage, Isolde and Tristan fell forever in love. Isolde did marry Mark of Cornwall, but could not help but love Tristan. The love affair continued after the marriage. When King Mark finally learned of the affair, he forgave Isolde, but Tristan was banned from Cornwall. Tristan went to Brittany. There he met Iseult of Brittany. He was attracted to her because of the similarity of her name to his true love. He married her, but did not consummate the marriage because of his love for the “true” Isolde. After falling ill, he sent for Isolde in hopes that she would be able to cure him. If she agreed to come, the returning ship’s sails would be white, or the sails would be black if she did not agree. Iseult, seeing the white sails, lied to Tristan and told him that the sails were black. He died of grief before Isolde could reach him. Isolde died soon after of a broken heart.
5. Paris and Helena - a Greek love story, combining fact and fiction
Recounted in Homer’s Iliad, the story of Helen of Troy and the Trojan War is a Greek heroic legend, combining fact and fiction. Helen of Troy is considered one the most beautiful women in all literature. She was married to Menelaus, king of Sparta. Paris, son of King Priam of Troy, fell in love with Helen and abducted her, taking her back to Troy. The Greeks assembled a great army, led by Menelaus’s brother, Agamemnon, to retrieve Helen. Troy was destroyed. Helen returned safely to Sparta, where she lived happily with Menelaus for the rest of her life.
We’ve seen this famous love story in an epic movie Troy.
6. Orpheus and Eurydice - an ancient Greek tale of desperate love
Orpheus and Eurydice story is an ancient Greek tale of desperate love. Orpheus fell deeply in love with and married Eurydice, a beautiful nymph. They were very much in love and very happy together. Aristaeus, a Greek god of the land and agriculture, became quite fond of Eurydice, and actively pursued her. While fleeing from Aristaeus, Eurydice ran into a nest of snakes which bit her fatally on her legs. Distraught, Orpheus played such sad songs and sang so mournfully that all the nymphs and gods wept. On their advice, Orpheus traveled to the underworld and by his music softened the hearts of Hades and Persephone (he was the only person ever to do so), who agreed to allow Eurydice to return with him to earth on one condition: he should walk in front of her and not look back until they both had reached the upper world. In his anxiety he forgot that both needed to be in the upper world, and he turned to look at her, and she vanished for the second time, but now forever.
7. Napoleon and Josephine - a great love story in history
A marriage of convenience, at age 26 Napoleon took a fancy to Josephine. An older, prominent, and most importantly wealthy woman. As time drew on, Napoleon fell deeply in love with Josephine, and she with him, but that didn’t deter the adultery on both sides – their mutual respect for one another kept them together, and their burning passion between them didn’t falter, and was genuine. They eventually split, as Napoleon deeply required something Josephine could not give him, an heir. Sadly they parted ways, both bearing the love and passion in their hearts, for all eternity.
8. Odysseus and Penelope - true love is worth waiting for
Few couples understand sacrifice quite like this Greek pair. After being torn apart, they wait twenty long years to be reunited. War takes Odysseus away shortly after his marriage to Penelope. Although she has little hope of his return, she resists the 108 suitors who are anxious to replace her husband. Odysseus is equally devoted, refusing a beautiful sorceress’s offer of everlasting love and eternal youth, so that he might return home to his wife and son. This Valentine’s Day, take a cue from Homer, and remember that true love is worth waiting for.
9. Paolo and Francesca - a true story made famous by Dante
Paolo and Francesca are made famous by the Dante’s masterpiece “Divine Comedy”. It is a true story: Francesca is married with Gianciotto Malatesta an awful person, but she has Gianciotto’s brother, Paolo, as lover. The love between them grows when they read together a book (according to Dante) about Lancelot and Guinevere. When the two lovers are discovered they are killed by Gianciotto.
10. Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler - a famous love story in literature
“Gone with the wind” can be identified as one of the immortal pieces of literary works in this world. Margaret Mitchell’s famous work has chronicled the love and hate relationship between Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler. Proving that timing is everything, Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler never seem to be quite in synch. Throughout the epic story, this tempestuous twosome experience passion but not permanence, and their stormy marriage reflects the surrounding Civil War battles. The flirtatious, promiscuous, and perpetually pursued Scarlett can’t make up her mind between her many suitors. When she finally decides to settle on being happy with Rhett, her fickle nature has already driven him away. Hope springs eternal in our devious heroine, however, and the novel ends with Scarlett proclaiming, “Tomorrow is another day.”
11. Jane Eyre and Rochester - a famous love story in literature
In Charlotte Bronte’s famous tale, friendless characters find a cure for loneliness in each other’s company. Jane is an abused orphan employed as a governess to the charge of an abrasive, but very rich Edward Rochester. The improbable pair grow close as Rochester reveals a tender heart beneath his gruff exterior. He does not, however, reveal his penchant for polygamy – on their wedding day, a horrified Jane discovers he is already married. Heartbroken, Jane runs away, but later returns after a dreadful fire has destroyed Rochester’s mansion, killed his wife, and left him blind. Love triumphs, and the two reunite and live out their days in shared bliss.
We’ve added this popular love story to our list: Top 10 Love Stories to Read in Your Lifetime
12. Layla and Majnun - a medieval romantic poem
A leading medieval poet of Iran, Nizami of Ganje is known especially for his romantic poem Layla and Majnun. Inspired by an Arab legend, Layla and Majnun is a tragic tale about unattainable love. It had been told and retold for centuries, and depicted in manuscripts and other media such as ceramics for nearly as long as the poem has been penned. Layla and Qays fall in love while at school. Their love is observed and they are soon prevented from seeing one another. In misery, Qays banishes himself to the desert to live among and be consoled by animals. He neglects to eat and becomes emaciated. Due to his eccentric behavior, he becomes known as Majnun (madman). There he befriends an elderly Bedouin who promises to win him Layla’s hand through warfare. Layla’s tribe is defeated, but her father continues to refuse her marriage to Majnun because of his mad behavior, and she is married to another. After the death of Layla’s husband, the old Bedouin facilitates a meeting between Layla and Majnun, but they are never fully reconciled in life. Upon death, they are buried side by side. The story is often interpreted as an allegory of the soul’s yearning to be united with the divine.
13. Eloise and Abelard - love letters that became world famous
This is a story of a monk and a nun whose love letters became world famous. Around 1100, Peter Abelard went to Paris to study at the school of Notre Dame. He gained a reputation as an outstanding philosopher. Fulbert, the canon of Notre Dame, hired Abelard to tutor his niece, Heloise. Abelard and the scholarly Heloise fell deeply in love, conceived a child, and were secretly married. But Fulbert was furious, so Abelard sent Heloise to safety in a convent. Thinking that he intended to abandon Heloise, Fulbert had his servants castrate Abelard while he slept. Abelard became a monk and devoted his life to learning. The heartbroken Heloise became a nun. Despite their separations and tribulations, Abelard and Heloise remained in love. Their poignant love letters were later published.
14. Pyramus and Thisbe - a famous Babylonian love story
A very touching love story that is sure to move anyone who reads it is that of Pyramus and Thisbe. Theirs was a selfless love and they made sure that even in death, they were together. Pyramus was the most handsome man and was childhood friend of Thisbe, the fairest maiden in Babylonia. They both lived in neighboring homes and fell in love with each other as they grew up together. However, their parents were dead against them marrying each other. So one night just before the crack of dawn, while everyone was asleep, they decided to slip out of their homes and meet in the nearby fields near a mulberry tree. Thisbe reached there first. As she waited under the tree, she saw a lion coming near the spring close by to quench its thirst. Its jaws were bloody. When Thisbe saw this horrifying sight, she panicked and ran to hide in some hollow rocks nearby. As she was running, she dropped her veil. The lion came near and picked up the veil in his bloody jaws. At that moment, Pyramus reaches near the mulberry tree and sees Thisbe’s veil in the jaws of the lion. He is completely devastated. Shattered, he pierces his chest with his own sword. Unknown to what just happened, Thisbe is still hiding in the rocks due to the fear of the lion. When she comes out after sometime, she sees what her lover did to himself. She is totally shattered when she sees the sword piercing right through her lover’s chest. She also takes the sword and kills herself.
15. Elizabeth Bennett and Darcy - a famous love story in literature
Actually Jane Austen has personified two attributes of human nature, pride and prejudice in Darcy and Elizabeth. Darcy comes from a very high social hierarchy and Pemberley. He typifies the educated aristocracy while on the other hand, Elizabeth is the second daughter of a gentleman of modest means. Mr. Bennett has five daughters who have been allowed to grow up the way they wanted, there has been no school education for them, nor has there been any governess at home. Elizabeth’s very indulgent mother and irresponsible father never gave any thought to the future of the daughters, it is always taken for granted, that they will do well for themselves. To a woman of Mrs. Bennett’s understanding, doing well exclusively means finding a rich, well to do husband. For a man of Darcy’s social stature, these were very serious failings of the family and totally unacceptable to his polished, educated and refined mind. Darcy adores Pemberley, and the future mistress of that estate can only be just as polished and refined and from an equally prestigious family. He falls in love with Elizabeth only to be refused by her initially, and then much later she realized that she can love no one but Darcy. How they become united and understand the love for each other makes very interesting study.
16. Salim and Anarkali - a legendary love story
The love story of Salim and Anarkali is a story that every lover knows. The son of the great Mughal emperor Akbar, Salim, fell in love with an ordinary but beautiful courtesan Anarkali. He was mesmerized by her beauty and fell in love as soon as he saw her. But the emperor could not digest the fact that his son was in love with an ordinary courtesan. He started pressurizing Anarkali and devised all sorts of tactics o make her fall in the eyes of the young, love smitten prince. When Salim came to know of this, he declared a war against his own father. But the mighty emperor’s gigantic army is too much for the young prince to handle. He gets defeated and is sentenced to death. This is when Anarkali intervenes and renounces her love to save her beloved from the jaws of death. She is entombed alive in a brick wall right in front of her lover’s eyes.
This famous love story is added to the list: Top 11 Most Famous Lovers In Indian History
17. Pocahontas and John Smith - a famous love story in the history of America
This love story is a famous legend in the history of America. Pocahontas, an Indian Princess was the daughter of Powhatan. Powhatan was the powerful chief of the Algonquian Indians in the Tidewater region of Virginia. Pocahontas for the first time in her life saw Englishmen in May 1607. She found John Smith most attractive and developed a liking for him. Smith was taken to the official residence of Powhattan and he was tortured. It was Pocahontas who saved his life from the attack of the Indians. Pocahontas then helped Smith to stand on his feet and Powhattan adopted Smith as his son. This incident helped Pocahontas and Smith to become friends with each other. Pocahontas after this incident made frequent visits to the Jamestown and passed on to the Indians messages of her father. John Smith after getting badly injured due to gunpowder explosion, returned to England. When Pocahontas made a visit to the fort, she was informed that Smith was dead. Sometime after, Pocahontas was taken prisoner by Sir Samuel Argall. Argall hoped to use Pocahontas as abargaining chip with her father Powhatan in effort to get English prisoners returned. During her captivity, she decided to become a Christian, taking the name “Rebecca” when she was baptized. A year later, she married John Rolfe. She made a visit to London, where he met his friend John Smith after eight long years and it was their last meeting.
18. Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal - a great love story in the history of India
In 1612, a teenage girl, Arjumand Banu, married 15-year-old Shah Jahan, ruler of the Mughal Empire. Renamed Mumtaz Mahal, she bore Shah Jahan 14 children and became his favorite wife. After Mumtaz died in 1629, the grieving emperor resolved to create a fitting monument. It took 20,000 workers and 1,000 elephants nearly 20 years to complete this monument – the Taj Mahal. Shah Jahan was never able to complete a black marble mausoleum he planned for himself. Deposed by his son, Shah Jahan was imprisoned in the Red Fort of Agra, and spent lonely hours staring across the Jamuna River at the monument to his beloved queen. He was eventually buried beside her in the Taj Mahal.
19. Marie and Pierre Curie - a great love story in science
This is a story about partners in love and science. Unable to continue her studies in Poland because universities did not admit women, Maria Sklodowska Curie traveled to Paris in 1891 to attend the Sorbonne. Known by the French “Marie,” she spent every spare hour reading in the library or in the laboratory. The industrious student caught the eye of Pierre Curie, director one of the laboratories where Marie worked. Curie ardently wooed Marie and made several marriage proposals. They were finally married in 1895 and began their famous partnership. In 1898 they discovered polonium and radium. The Curies and scientist Henri Becquerel won a Nobel Prize for Physics in 1903 for discovering radioactivity. When Curie died in 1904, Marie pledged to carry on their work. She took his place at the Sorbonne, becoming the school’s first female teacher. In 1911 she became the first person to win a second Nobel Prize, this time for chemistry. She continued to experiment and lecture until her death of leukemia in 1934, driven by the memory of the man she loved.
20. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert - a great love story in the history of England
This love story is about English royalty who mourned her husband’s death for 40 years. Victoria was a lively, cheerful girl, fond of drawing and painting. She ascended the throne of England in 1837 after the death of her uncle, King William IV. In 1840, she married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. While at first Prince Albert was unpopular in some circles because he was German, he came to be admired for his honesty, diligence, and his devotion to his family. The couple had nine children. Victoria loved her husband deeply. She relied on his advice in matters of state, especially in diplomacy. When Albert died in 1861, Victoria was devastated. She did not appear in public for three years. Her extended seclusion generated considerable public criticism. Several attempts were made on Victoria’s life. However, under the influence of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, Victoria resumed public life, opening Parliament in 1866. But Victoria never stopped mourning her beloved prince, wearing black until her death in 1901. During her reign, the longest in English history, Britain became a world power on which “the sun never set.”
21. Henry II and Rosamund Clifford - a medieval English love affair
Although the King of England had a wife and a plethora of mistresses, the one he loved was Rosamund. To cover up their love affair, he built a love room far in the recesses of a maze at Woodstock Park. However, Queen Eleanor found them out and made Rosamund choose to die by poison or blade. She chose the former.
22. Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour - a love story at the French Court
Jeanne Antoinette Poisson met King Louis XV and danced with him at a masked ball. Some weeks after, she was given the Marquise de Pompadour title by the King. The couple indulged in the love of art, porcelain, and furniture. She often arranged small dinner parties for her royal lover and amateur theatricals in which she starred. He declared she was the most delicious French woman of her time during one of the plays and swept her out of the theatre to the room.
23. Hadrian and Antinous - famous lovers in history of Ancient Rome
Emperor Hadrian had his heart taken by a young, sport-loving, intelligent Greek student, Antinous. The emperor, at some point, craves his presence obsessively. They traveled and hunted together, and the emperor wrote erotic poems about his lover. Antinous, however, drowned mysteriously at the Nile during a visit, but some believe that he was murdered by people that were jealous of the affection he commanded from the emperor. The devastated emperor pronounced Antinous a deity and honored him by building a city and naming a star after him.
24. Dante and Beatrice - true love of the greatest poet
Italian poet and writer Dante Alighieri had strong affections for Beatrice, a woman he only met twice in his life. However, he wrote passionately about her in his poems, including in the Divine Comedy. The pair met as kids aged nine and eight years. They met coincidentally the second time they met as adults on the streets of Florence, but she only greeted him and turned to continue her journey. She died in 1290, at 24, so he never got to meet her again. However, he continued to love her and often wrote about her.
25. John and Abigail Adams - one of the most famous love stories in history of the United States
Abigail married John Adams at 20, and their union produced five children, including John Quincy Adams (America’s fifth president). However, throughout their love story, they showed unwavering love and devotion, with over 1000 letters shared between themselves. More than the revolutionary political idea they shared, they also had an abiding friendship and mutual devotion.
26. John Keats and Fanny Brawne - the fiancée and muse to English Romantic poet
John’s romance with Fanny Brawne, his neighbor, inspired his poem “Bright Star”, which became his most famous writing. Their relationship was, however, fraught with jealousy. John was fiercely overzealous, and Fanny was flirtatious and precocious. They often clashed, and their love never reached its full requisite because Keat lacked money and fell ill. He had to end their engagement so he could get treatment in Rome, where he later died, and his love remained unrequited.
27. Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo - not a typical love story
Frida Kahlo was a young and talented Mexican painter that visited Rivera, a famous muralist, in his studio to get career advice. That turned out to be the start of their relationship. While they shared love, the relationship was also volatile, but Rivera was sure that she was the most important piece of his life, and she continued to be until her death 27 years later.
28. Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward - one of the happiest love stories in Hollywood
The couple met at the movie production set of Picnic and married later. However, unlike many Hollywood romances, Paul and Joanne are happily devoted to each other for fifty years. They later left the Hollywood spotlight for Connecticut to raise their family until Paul died in 2008.
29. Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier of Monaco - a famous love story of an American Princess
American movie star Grace Kelly ditched Hollywood at the peak of her career to marry the love of her life Prince Rainier and become the Princess of Monaco in 1956. They met in the French Riviera while filming To Catch a Thief, and he was immediately attracted to her. Grace’s sudden death separated the couple in 1982, and Prince Rainier never remarried.
30. Carolyn Bessette and John F. Kennedy Jr. - the '90s golden couple
The couple got married secretly in Georgia, proving they wanted to keep their romance private. They tried to live normally in their Tribeca apartment. Even though they had their ups and downs like other marriages, the love was evident. It soon became public knowledge, and they became an iconic couple. Unfortunately, they both died tragically in a plane crash on July 16, 1999.