The Gladstone 200 Campaign
Gladstone’s Library is situated in the Welsh village of Hawarden, just a few miles from the Roman city of Chester. It is one of the world’s great theological resources and is unique not only because it is a residential library (with twenty-six bedrooms at one end and 250,000 books at the other) but because it is Britain’s only Prime Ministerial library. It was founded in 1894 “for the pursuit of divine learning” by William Ewart Gladstone, one of Britain’s greatest political figures, a man who was keenly involved in the key theological and political debates of the nineteenth century. Andrew Carnegie described him as “the world’s greatest citizen” and Garret A. Hobart, Vice President at the time of Gladstone’s death, remarked that “not even in his own land was Mr Gladstone more highly esteemed and venerated than in the United States.”
Gladstone’s Library attracts visitors from all over the world: they come to read, write and reflect; to explore the beautiful Welsh countryside, the mountains of Snowdonia and the medieval castles. Within the collection are nationally important archives of political documents relating to Gladstone. The Library has a special responsibility to preserve these and the 32,000 volumes from Gladstone’s personal library at Hawarden Castle as part of Britain’s cultural heritage. The building in which this unique collection is housed is also important and has been officially recognized as one of the finest and most important buildings in Wales, both architecturally and because of its historical associations with Gladstone.
Although 2009 actually marked the bicentennial of Gladstone’s birth on December 29th, 1809, the Gladstone 200 Campaign was in fact launched towards the end of 2008 with events in Boston, Philadelphia and New York which were attended by two of Gladstone’s great-great-grandsons. This was followed by a program of events which took place at a number of prestigious venues in Britain throughout 2009. Gladstone’s Library played a leading role in these celebrations, co-ordinating events at Eton College, Westminster Abbey, National Liberal Club and Oxford University.
In establishing his Library, Gladstone left us a tremendous legacy, not just in terms of bricks and mortar but in terms of the values he held dear and his commitment to education and learning. Through the Gladstone 200 Campaign, we want to continue this work, fulfil his vision and safeguard the Library for future generations. We decided to do this by considering the issues which would be of concern to Gladstone if he were alive today. He was a man of great faith as well as a great politician, so would, we believe, be deeply concerned at the lack of understanding between Christians and Muslims. One of the main aims of the Campaign was, therefore, to establish and resource a new Reading Room at the Library which would have a special focus on Islamic faith and culture and would enable Christians and others to reach a deeper understanding of Islam and its place in the contemporary world. An area within the existing building has been designated for this purpose. This exciting new facility, the ‘House of Wisdom’, will be officially opened later this year. Like the rest of the collection, the books in this new Reading Room will be freely available to all. They will complement the courses that are now a regular part of the Library’s program and will help to stimulate debate about and interest in contemporary interfaith issues, in particular those affecting Christians and Muslims.
Another important phase of the Campaign was completed in January 2011 with the refurbishment and upgrading of eleven bedrooms to include en-suite facilities. The bedrooms have been designed to be comfortable and conducive to study - whether our guests are here for a couple of nights or a couple of months.
The generous support of the U.S.Friends of Gladstone’s Library, Inc. has played an important part in facilitating the development of the ‘House of Wisdom’ and the refurbishment of bedrooms.
Further information about the Campaign and our future fundraising activities will appear here in due course.
