Windsor in flames seals the Queen’s ‘annus horribilis’
It began when a spotlight set fire to a 30ft-high curtain. The blaze, in the Queen’s Private Chapel at Windsor Castle, immediately triggered an alarm. But despite that prompt warning, within minutes, fire had spread to several neighbouring rooms.
The blaze would ultimately destroy 115 rooms and was to take 225 firefighters 1.5 million gallons of water to extinguish. But Windsor Castle – Queen Elizabeth’s favourite home – was fully repaired within five years at a cost of £36.5 million.
The fire led to the Queen paying tax on her income and to Buckingham Palace, the former monarch’s other official residence, being opened to the public to help pay for the Windsor Castle restoration work.
It was believed to be one of the unpleasant events of 1992 which inspired the monarch’s famous “annus horribilis” speech.
The fire began at 11.15am and triggered an alarm in the watch room, which was manned by Marshall Smith, chief fire officer of the castle’s own 20-strong brigade. Smith pressed a switch to alert the control room at Reading fire station. He then activated the castle’s public fire alarm and telephoned Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service on a direct line.
Meanwhile, building contractors working in a nearby room attempted to subdue the blaze with fire extinguishers.
Others set about removing works of art, until being forced to retreat by the intense heat.
The castle fire brigade, equipped with a pump appliance and based in stables two miles away, arrived at 11.41am, followed by the local brigade three minutes later.
By 12.20pm the fire had spread to St George’s Hall, a banqueting hall and the largest of the State Apartments. At 3.30pm the floors of Brunswick Tower collapsed, forcing firemen to withdraw. The fire in the tower raged all afternoon, with flames reaching up to 50ft high.
By 11pm the main blaze was extinguished, although pockets of fire remained until the early hours of the morning, some 15 hours after it began. The fire had spread rapidly due to the large cavities and voids in the roof.
Water from the mains, a reservoir-fed hydrant, a swimming pool, pond and even the River Thames were used to fight the flames.
Despite the severity of the fire, castle firemen,
soldiers, staff and tradesmen helped to move furniture and works of art to safety, including a 150ft table and a 120ft carpet, 300 clocks, a collection of miniatures, thousands of books and historic manuscripts, and old Master drawings from the Royal Library.
Initial estimates put the damage to the castle – which was not insured – at £60 million, and that it would take the building 10 years to dry out.
In the event, the final cost was £36.5m. The first stage of the structural restoration was completed in May 1996. The money was raised by charging the public for admission into the castle precincts and Buckingham Palace. A fund was set up for private donations and the Queen contributed £2m of her own money.