Come join The Armenian Institute community for a restorative weekend in the Welsh countryside. Tucked in Hawarden village, you will find yourself immersed in heritage and culture within a remarkable neo-Gothic building dating from the turn of the 20th century– beautiful Gladstone’s Library.
Founded by former Prime Minister William Gladstone, the Library is a unique residential retreat dedicated to theology and spirituality, history, current affairs, and literature, both classical and contemporary. With its iconic reading rooms, peaceful gardens, chapel, cosy guest lounge, bar, restaurant and simple but characterful bedrooms, it offers the perfect setting for a thoughtful break.
This special weekend offers a rare opportunity to explore treasures from Gladstone’s personal connections with the Armenian people. The Library holds remarkable artefacts gifted to him, including a 16th-century illuminated New Testament, a chalice, and a striking Armenian church window, all of which you will discover during a private guided tour and curated exhibition viewing.
This event forms part of a new series dedicated to exploring Armenian manuscripts and material heritage in lesser-known UK collections. The Armenian Institute is pleased to hold this unique weekend field trip at the Gladstone Library in North Wales.
This event series honours the memory of the late Ruth Keshishian, a lover of books, archives, researchers, and intellectual life, and dear friend and supporter of the Armenian Institute.
The two-day programme runs as follows:
Saturday 20 June 2026
Plan to arrive in good time before the start of the programme, to leave your bags at reception.
2pm – Welcome drinks and introductory talk
By the Library’s Warden and Director, Revd Dr Andrea Russell, in the Gladstone Room.
2:30pm – Talks by the Reading Rooms team
Insights from the Reading Rooms team in the Gladstone Room.
3pm – Check in to rooms
Tea and coffee will be served during this break.
4pm – Private guided tour
Tour of the Library and exhibition/collections viewing in the Glynne Room. Discover the historic building and its fascinating collections, and view Armenian artefacts up close.
5pm – Visit to nearby St Deiniol’s Church
Home to the Armenian window and chalice.
6:30pm – Two-course dinner
A relaxed evening meal at Food for Thought, the Library’s restaurant, where seasonal dishes cater for vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free diets (with advance notice for other requirements).
After dinner, unwind as you wish: enjoy board games, jigsaws or chess, retreat to the Reading Rooms for quiet reflection, or relax with a drink at the Honesty Bar in the Gladstone Room lounge.
Then retire to one of the Library’s charming bedrooms, a peaceful sanctuary far removed from weekday routines.
Sunday 21st June 2026
...is yours to enjoy at your own pace.
A continental breakfast is included with the room booking. Check out by 10am.
Wander through the Library’s gardens and parkland, read beneath the high windows of the Reading Rooms, or simply savour the stillness. Guests can obtain permits to walk in the woods surrounding Hawarden Castle, soaking up the beauty of the Gladstone Estate (please enquire at Reception).
St Deiniol’s Church has services on Sundays at 8 and 10am, for your information.
You may then choose to book a traditional Sunday roast at Food for Thought (not included; please book your table upon arrival).
If you’d like to explore further afield, the Library is ideally located — just six miles from the historic walled city of Chester, and within easy reach of the market town of Mold, the pilgrimage site of St Winefride’s Well, and the elegant Victorian seaside resort of Llandudno.
Hawarden itself is a delightful village, home to independent shops and the award-winning Hawarden Estate Farm Shop.
You are welcome to spend the afternoon studying in the Reading Rooms or relaxing in the Gladstone Room. Note that the library closes to non-residents at 5pm.
You may book tickets either for Saturday’s programme without the dinner, or choose Full Weekend tickets that include all events.
To secure accommodation, Full Weekend tickets must be booked by 20 April 2026. After this, bookings will be accepted until 20 May, but accommodation's availability is not guaranteed after 20 April.
Saturday Talks Ticket (2–6:30pm)
🎟️ £50, only includes talks, guided tours and refreshments on Sat. 20 June. Meals and accommodation are not included.
Full Weekend Ticket
Includes:
All talks and guided tours
Welcome drinks
Mid-afternoon tea and coffee
Saturday two-course dinner
Access to the Library grounds, lounges and Reading Room.
One night’s accommodation (single or double occupancy) with continental breakfast.
🎟️Single ticket: £190, includes one Full Weekend ticket and one single bedroom.
🎟️Double ticket: £295, includes two sets of Full Weekend tickets and one double or twin bedroom.
Not included in the ticket price:
Train travel (A direct train ride from London Euston, or elsewhere, to Chester railway station. Please write if you need help arranging travel.)
Taxi transfers
Saturday and Sunday lunches (which you may choose to book independently)
Speaker
Andrea Russell is Warden of Gladstone’s Library, taking up the role in October 2022. For the past 10 years, she has been involved in theological education and comes to Hawarden from Oxford Diocese, where she was Director of Formation for Ministry. There, she oversaw the provision of training and continued learning for both clergy and licensed lay ministers. She has a legal background, having worked initially as a solicitor before moving into theology. Her PhD focused on Richard Hooker, a key figure in the Church of England in the 16th Century and even though the title of his book doesn’t at first sight appear to be all that riveting (The Lawes of Ecclesiastical Polity), she assures us that it really is an exciting read! She loves reading crime novels and being by the sea.
