Gladstone’s Library’s Latin in a Week Course

Escaping from the chaos of your daily life, you turn off the A55 and away from the Northbound tourist traffic. Making your way down the country lane, you pass the boundary walls of the castle and enter the quiet and quaint village of Hawarden. As you turn towards the old church, you feel that you are entering a different time – a feeling that become reality as you turn into the grounds of Gladstone’s Library. Built in an echo of Oxford Colleges, this is an imposing and decorative building. Surrounded by green lawns on three sides and an ivy covered graveyard on the fourth, there is a sense of being enclosed in a bubble. Walking through the heavy wooden doors with your suitcase, you are greeted by a friendly receptionist who will present you with your keys. These keys include your room key, a fob to access the library and a keyring informing you of the name of your room (these range from theological locations such as ‘Lindisfarne’, famous theologians like ‘William Morgan’ and members of the Gladstone family). The old wooden staircase creaks underfoot as you make your way to your room. The corridors twist and turn, drawing you into the heart of the building in search of which of the thirty three rooms you will be calling home during your time here. The rooms are small and the quantity help to establish an exclusive and intimate atmosphere, thus making this adventure feel like an extra special one.

Once you have settled in, you head back down the stairs to explore the library, which is an architectural dream of wooden shelves and balconies. An old theology library, you will find that many of the books are leather bound religious studies; however, this does not mean to say that there are not plenty of hidden treats to be discovered. Desks crowd every nook and cosy armchairs encourage you to snuggle up with a good book and while away your hours in this dark academia dream. Beyond the safety of the library, you find the Gladstone Room, which is full of armchairs, a chapel, small conference rooms and, of course, the dining room (named Food for Thought). While staying at the library, you have a chance to work (or relax!), or walk to explore the local area. The old church next door with its overgrown graveyard is perfect for early morning walks, or just to sit and soak up the atmosphere.

Alternatively, the summer brings with it a Latin course. The Latin in a Week course runs from Monday afternoon until Sunday afternoon and is an intensive introduction to the language. It is ultimately a crash course that takes a small group of students from the first conjugation (amo, amas, amat…) to deciphering the poetry of Catullus and other Latin texts. The week is almost entirely spent sitting at a desk, which means that it can be fairly exhausting; however, there are a few hours off every afternoon to look back over your notes, take a nap or head out for a walk. The classes begin at 9:35 after a leisurely breakfast and run until 12:30, with a coffee break mid morning. Following lunch (of which there is a variety of options including vegan and gluten free mains and deserts), there is another hour before coffee and Welsh cakes and a break until dinner. After dinner there is another class until about 9pm and then you are free to go. The teaching style includes about fifteen minutes of teaching and then a series of questions answered in a round robin style. This may at first seem a little nerve-wracking, but you are taken slowly through the answers when you struggle and everyone is in the same boat. While it is not a requirement to have any languages under your belt, it will help you along your way to have some grounding in Latin or a Latin derived language. This will make you a little more secure going in; however I personally did not and managed to keep up with the rest of the class. These classes are small, which encourages a comfortable atmosphere as the week goes by and adds a tinge of sadness to the Sunday lunchtime as you gear up to say goodbye. Yet, friendships are made and kept and the tutor encourages you not only to keep up with your learning but also to keep in touch. Walking away, you have a binder of notes and hopefully a thirst for Latin.

Gladstone’s Library is said to be the only residential library in the UK and its North Wales location enables it to maintain an air of mystery and a seperateness from the busy chaos of the southern cities. There is a magic locked within the stone walls, a peace that radiates from the beautiful library out across the grounds and into the local graveyard. In armchairs academics and authors alike can be found curled up with a book, while others spend their time working at the desks in the ornate library itself. With inclusive meals and staff that are all friendly and seem genuinely invested in the establishment and what it represents, a week here feels like one of the most special of the year. Add to that a Latin course and you have a dark academia dream come true. The course is not supposed to be the be all and end all but rather a taster to a language and cultures long past, which will hopefully give you the courage to continue your studies and fall in love with a language that has been so key to our past and shaping our present.