CELEBRATING THE GRAND OLD MAN

A WREATH-laying ceremony to commemorate the bicentenary of Liberal statesman, William Ewart Gladstone will be taking place in Liverpool, exactly 200 years after the date of his birth.

The Deputy Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Hazel Williams will lead the wreath-laying ceremony at Gladstone’s monument in St John’s Gardens on Tuesday December 29th 2009 at 12noon. It will be followed by the opening of a three-month long exhibition about Gladstone at Liverpool’s St George’s Hall. Representatives from St Deiniol’s Library – the national memorial to Gladstone – as well as Trustees and Friends of St George’s Hall will also attend the ceremony. Gladstone was born in Liverpool on the 29th December 1809 at Rodney Street. He enjoyed an incredible parliamentary career becoming Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer many times. His policies and reforms soon became known as Gladstonian Liberalism and improved individual liberty and reduced political and economic restraints. He is widely remembered for his support of Irish Home Rule and ethical foreign policy as well as for his clashes with Conservative Leader Benjamin Disraeli. Bicentenary celebrations to celebrate the Grand Old Man of British politics have been taking place throughout 2009 led by St Deiniol’s Library in Hawarden, Flintshire – which Gladstone founded in 1894 and which is the only Prime Ministerial library in the UK. The celebrations will culminate in a wreath-laying ceremony at Westminster Abbey on January 12th 2010. The Deputy Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Hazel Williams, said: “It gives me great pleasure to honour the 200th anniversary of such an amazing man. I would like to encourage as many people as possible to join the city’s celebration and view the Gladstone Exhibition at St George’s Hall.” Peter Francis, Warden of St Deiniol’s Library, said: “2009 has been an incredible year to remember Gladstone – his lifetime’s achievements have been debated and discussed in great detail at conferences, lectures and festivals. “Gladstone continues to be a shining example to us all, and I hope that the work we are engaged with at present, will ensure that generations to come will also benefit from his wisdom and vitality.” Photo/Filming Opportunity Wreath Laying Ceremony: Tuesday 29th December, 2009, St John’s Gardens, Liverpool, 12 noon. Guests: Deputy Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Hazel Williams, representatives from St Deiniol’s Library, and trustees and friends of St George’s Hall. ENDS Notes to Editors • St John’s Gardens in Liverpool is a Victorian memorial park featuring sculptures commemorating Liverpool reformers who addressed the most pressing social problems of the 19th century. It opened in 1904 and the statue of Gladstone depicts him holding books and parchments, flanked by the female figures of Truth and Justice. • St Deiniol’s Library, in Hawarden, Flintshire, was set up by Gladstone in 1894 and it is the only Prime Ministerial library in the UK. It includes 32,000 items from Gladstone’s own personal library, many of which were transported by hand cart from his home at Hawarden Castle. • Today, St Deiniol’s has a collection of 250,000 works and is the only Prime Ministerial library in the UK and one of the finest residential libraries; it attracts writers, academics, clergy and students from all over the world. • Peter Francis is the Warden of St Deiniol’s Library; he has edited two collections of lectures on Gladstone: The Grand Old Man and The Gladstone Umbrella. • Pictures of St Deiniol’s Library and Gladstone are available.