In 1992 Windsor Castle to the west of London, the largest inhabited castle in the world and one of the official residences of the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, suffered severe damage in a fire, which destroyed some of the most historic parts of the building. Over the next few years the castle was fully repaired at great expense. The question of how the funds required should be found raised important issues about the financing of the monarchy, and led to Buckingham Palace being opened to the public for the first time to help to pay for the restoration. An early 18th century view of Windsor Castle by Kip and Knyff. ... The Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster, which contains Big Ben London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... The Alcázar of Segovia, Spain A castle (from the Latin castellum, diminutive of castra, a military camp, in turn the plural of castrum or watchpost), is a fort, a camp and the logical development of a fortified enclosure. ... The British monarch or Sovereign is the monarch and head of state of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories, and is the source of all executive, judicial and (as the Queen-in-Parliament) legislative power. ... Elizabeth II in an official portrait as Queen of Canada (on the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 2002, wearing the Sovereigns badges of the Order of Canada and the Order of Military Merit) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary) (born 21 April 1926), styled HM The... Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial. ...

The progress of the fire

The fire began in The Queen's Private Chapel at 11.33 am on Friday 20 November 1992, when a 250 watt halogen lamp being used by decorators ignited a curtain. 1992 is a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the halogen light bulb, click here. ...

The alarm went off in the watch-room of the Castle fire brigade, manned by Chief Fire Office Marshall Smith. The site of the fire was shown by a light on a large grid map of the whole castle. Initially the Brunswick Tower alone was indicated, but lights soon lit up indicating that the fire had quickly spread to several neighbouring rooms. The major part of the State Apartments were soon ablaze.

Patrolling firemen were paged by an automatic system, and at 11.37 am Mr Smith pressed the switch to alert the Control Room at Reading. He then activated the public fire alarm, known as an ER7 alert (a continuous high pitch tone), and telephoned the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service on a direct line. Reading is an activity: Reading is an activity performed by a human. ...

Mr Smith proceeded to the Brunswick Tower to assess the situation, and to begin the salvage operations which, together with fire precautions, had been the main responsibility of the castle brigade since the county force took over responsibility for fire-fighting at Windsor Castle in September 1991. 1991 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The Castle still had its own 20 strong force, of whom six were full-time. Equipped with a Land Rover and pump tender, they were based in the Royal Mews, stables south of the castle. The Royal Mews is the mews (stables and in recent times also the garage) of the British Royal Family in London. ...

The first appliances of the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service arrived at the castle between 11.44 and 11.45 am, some 7-8 minutes after the alert was given. By 11.48 am there were 10 engines (enough for the Chief Officer to be informed if the fire had been in London). The Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster, which contains Big Ben London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ...

By 12.12 pm there were 20 engines, and by 2.20 pm there were 35, with over 200 firemen from London, Buckinghamshire, Surrey, and Oxfordshire, as well as from Berkshire. The Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster, which contains Big Ben London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... Buckinghamshire (abbreviated Bucks) is a county in South East England. ... Surrey is a county in southern England, one of the Home Counties. ... Oxfordshire (abbreviated Oxon, from Latin Oxonia) is a county in South East England, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Warwickshire. ...

The Fire Incident Commander was David Harper, Deputy Chief Fire and Rescue Officer of the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service, who reported to Chief Fire and Rescue Officer Garth Scotford in Reading Control.

By 12.20 pm the fire had spread to St George's Hall, the largest of the State Apartments, and further reinforcements were called. The fire-fighting forces by then totalled 39 appliances (including two hydraulic platforms) and 225 fire-fighters. As an indication of the scale of the fire, there had been only one 30-appliance fire in the whole of Greater London since 1973. Greater London is the top level administrative subdivision covering London, England. ... 1973 was a common year starting on Monday. ...

By 1.30 pm firebreaks had been erected by tradesmen at the southern wall of the Green Drawing Room (at the end of St George's Hall on the east side of the Quadrangle), and at the north-west corner at Chester Tower, where that tower joins the Grand Corridor. The fire-fighters had by this time begun to bring the fire under control (though the roof of the State Apartments had begun to collapse).

At 3.30 pm the fire was surrounded, and the floors of the Brunswick Tower collapsed, concentrating the fire there. Firemen had to temporarily withdraw to locate three men who were briefly lost in the smoke, and on a second occasion withdrew when men were temporarily unaccounted for when a roof fell in.

At 4.15 pm the fire had revived in the Brunswick Tower. As night fell the fire was concentrated in the Brunswick Tower, which by 6.30 pm was engulfed in flames 50 feet high, which could be seen for many miles. At 7 pm the fire broke through the roof of the tower, and later the roof of St George's Hall finally collapsed into the conflagration.

By 8 pm the fire was finally under control, having burnt for nine hours, although it continued to burn for a further three hours. By 11 pm however the main fire was extinguished, and by 2.30 pm the last secondary fires were put out. Pockets of fire remained alive until early Saturday, some 15 hours later. Sixty firemen with eight appliances remained on duty for several more days.

Over one million gallons (4,500 tons) of water from Castle mains and from the River Thames had been used in fighting the fire. Several places exist with the name Thames, and the word is also used as part of several brand and company names Most famous is the River Thames in England, on which the city of London stands Other Thames Rivers There is a Thames River in Canada There is a Thames...

Forces involved in fighting the fire

Apart from the firemen directly involved in fighting the fire, over 300 staff and tradesmen helped the Castle fire brigade and volunteer salvage corps members. They removed furniture and works of art from the endangered apartments, including a 150 foot long table, and a 120 foot long carpet from the Waterloo Chamber, to the safety of the castle Riding School. Also removed, in an enormous logistics exercise, were 300 clocks, a collection of miniatures, many thousands of valuable books and manuscripts, and old Master drawings from the Royal Library. Royal Library can mean: Danish Royal Library - the national library of Denmark Swedish Royal Library - the national library of Sweden The former name of the Bibliothèque nationale de France - the national library of France This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share...

On fire officers' instructions heavy chests and tables were left behind. All items were placed on giant sheets of plastic on the North Terrace and in the Quadrangle, and the police called in dozens of removal vans from a large part of the Home Counties to carry items to other parts of the Castle.

Others of the Castle staff involved included Major Barry Eastwood, Castle Superintendent (head of administration), and the Governor of the Castle, General Sir Patrick Palmer. The staff of St George's Chapel and Estate workers also assisted in various ways. General Sir Patrick Palmer, KBE was Constable and Governor of Windsor Castle 1992 to 2000. ... St. ...

Members of the Royal Household helped, including the Lord Chamberlain, the Earl of Airlie. The Royal Collection Department were especially active, including the Director Sir Geoffrey de Bellaigue, the Surveyor of Pictures Christopher Lloyd, the Deputy Surveyor of The Queen's Works of Art Hugh Roberts, the Curator of Print Room Hon Mrs Roberts, and Librarian Oliver Everett. In all the medieval monarchies of western Europe the general system of government sprang from, and centred in, the royal household. ... The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom, and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the great offices of state. ... The title Earl of Airlie was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1586 for James Ogilvy. ... The Royal Collection Department is an organisation tasked with the cataloguing, conservation, cleaning, restoration and display of the books, pictures, sculptures and other works of art collected by the British royal family. ...

The Household Cavalry arrived from Combermere Barracks, St Leonard's Road, Windsor. Some 100 officers and men of the Life Guards also proved invaluable for moving bulky items. Officers of the Royalty and Diplomatic Protection Department, led by Chief Inspector KR Miller, were also present. The term Household Cavalry is used across the Commonwealth of Nations to describe the cavalry of the Household Divisions. ... The Household Cavalry Regiment of the British Army has an active operational role in armoured fighting vehicles which has seen them at the forefront of the nations conflicts. ... Windsor (IPA: usually , but also ) is a small town in Berkshire on the south-western outskirts of London, south of the River Thames. ... The Life Guards is the senior regiment of the British Army. ... The security, as distinct from the ceremonial bodyguards or military protection, of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom and of members of the British Royal Family is entrusted to the Metropolitan Police. ...

Her Majesty The Queen had been advised of the fire by a cell-phone call from His Royal Highness The Duke of York. The Duke had been in the mews across the Quadrangle from the State Apartments, doing research work for his course at the Staff College Camberley when the fire broke out. Her Majesty is the name of a song written by Paul McCartney (although credited to Lennon-McCartney) that appears on The Beatles album Abbey Road. ... The word Queen ultimately derives from an Indo-European root *gwena (woman) via Old English cwén (woman, wife, queen). ... The title Duke of York is a title of nobility usually given to the second son of the British monarch, unless the title is already held by an earlier monarchs son who is still alive. ...

Her Majesty arrived at 3 pm, and stayed at the castle for an hour, returning again the following morning. The Prince of Wales visited in the evening. The Duke of York briefed the press at 3 pm. The Badge of the Prince of Wales is derived from the ostrich feathers borne by Edward, the Black Prince. ...

Extent of damage to the Castle

There had been no serious injuries, and no deaths. Dean Lansdale (aged 21), a decorator in the Private Chapel, was burnt while removing pictures (of which he had rescued three). He was moved to the royal surgery then to hospital. Christopher Lloyd, the Surveyor of The Queen's Pictures, suffered a suspected heart attack, while five firemen were taken to hospital, two with hypothermia, three with minor burns and dust in their eyes.

The major loss was to the fabric of the Castle. The false roof above St George's Hall and the void beneath the floors for coal trucks had allowed the fire to spread. It burnt as far as the Chester Tower. Several ceilings collapsed. Apartments burnt included the Crimson Drawing Room (which was completely guttered), the Green Drawing Room (badly damaged, though only partially destroyed, by smoke and water), and The Queen's Private Chapel (including the double sided nineteenth century Henry Willis organ in the gallery between St George's Hall and Private Chapel, oak panelling, glass, and the altar). Henry Willis (born: 27th April 1821, London - died: 11th February 1901, London) was a British orgainst turned organ maker. ...

St George's Hall partially survived, with the wall largely intact, but with the ceiling collapsed. The State Dining Room (in the Prince of Wales Tower; which was badly damaged, as was the fabric of the tower), and the Grand Reception Room (80% severely damaged, though 20% of the ceiling was eventually saved) were also devastated.

Smaller apartments damaged or destroyed (and over 100 rooms were involved in the fire) included the Star Chamber, Octagon Room, Brunswick Tower, Cornwall Tower, Prince of Wales Tower (badly damaged), Chester Tower (badly damaged), Holbein Room, and the Great Kitchen (which lost its plaster cove, and most of its mediæval timber).

The external wall above the bay window of the Crimson Drawing Room (between the Prince of Wales and Chester Towers) was seriously calcified.

The Waterloo Chamber was undamaged, as were the Grand Vestibule, Rubens Room, Ante-Throne Room, Throne Room, Ball Room, Serving Room, and China Closet (which was not affected although it was surrounded by the fire). Overall some 80% of the area of the staterooms was undamaged.

Fortuitously the seven most seriously damaged rooms had largely been emptied the previous day for rewiring. The Castle had just completed an 18 month phase of rewiring in most of the rooms destroyed.

Items from the Royal Collection lost included the Sir William Beechy equestrian portrait George III at a Review, which was too large to remove from its frame; a large late 1820's sideboard by Morel and Seddon (18 feet long); several pieces of porcelain; several chandeliers; as well as the Willis organ; and the 1851 Great Exhibition Axminster carpet partly burnt. George III (George William Frederick) (4 June 1738–29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain, and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until 1 January 1801, and thereafter King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death. ... The Great Exhibition was an international exhibition held in Hyde Park London, from 1 May to 15 October 1851 and the first in a series of Worlds Fair exhibitions of culture and industry that were to be a popular 19th century feature. ... Arms of Axminster Town Council Axminster is a small market town on the eastern border of Devon, England. ...

A specially commissioned group of 11 water-colours of the destruction caused by the fire at Windsor, by Alexander Cresswell, are now on display in the Waterloo Chamber.

Tourists were allowed into the precincts within three days. The Queen was in residence a fortnight later. The Gallery, and Queen Mary's Doll's House reopened in December. The State Apartments reopened early 1993 after rewiring was completed, with all major rooms open by Easter, when only St George's Hall and the Grand Reception Room remained closed. Thus 11 of 15 principal rooms of the State Apartments were open, with two still undergoing long-term restoration, and two more destroyed. 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ...

Restoration programme

It was initially feared that it could cost £60m to restore the castle, though later estimates saw this reduced to some £30-40m, with completion anticipated by 1997. A trust for donations towards the cost of fire restoration was announced 16 February 1993 by Coutts & Co (with NatWest). 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Coutts (also known as Coutts & Co, or Coutts and Company) is a private bank, owned by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). ... Old NatWest logo NatWest (formerly the National Westminster Bank) is the United Kingdoms third biggest bank. ...

On 29 April 1993 it was announced that up to 70% of the cost of restoration was to be met by charging the public £3 for entry to the Castle precincts, and £8 for admission to Buckingham Palace for the next five years. Her Majesty The Queen was to personally contribute £2m. Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial. ...

On 7 June 1994 the details of the £40m restoration programme were announced. The architectural firm Sidell Gibson Partnership were appointed to produce the final designs. 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ...

Over half the damaged and destroyed rooms, including the State and Octagon dining rooms were to be restored as original. There were to be new designs for the St George's Hall ceiling (with steel reinforcing beams in the roof) and East Screen, also The Queen's Private Chapel, Stuart and Holbein Room. However, only The Queen's Private Chapel and several modern rooms were to be restored in a modern style.

Designs were to be submitted to a Restoration Committee, whose chairman was His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, and Deputy Chairman His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. Members included the Earl of Airlie (Lord Chamberlain), Sir Hayden Phillips (Permanent Secretary of the Department of National Heritage), Lord St John of Fawsley (Chairman of the Royal Fine Art Commission), Sir Jocelyn Stevens (Chairman of English Heritage), Frank Duffy (President of the Royal Institute of British Architects), and three senior palace officials. The Duke of Edinburgh is a British dukedom. ... In the United Kingdom, the non-political civil service head of a government department, as distinct from the political Secretary of State to whom he or she reports. ... The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (sometimes abbreviated DCMS) is a department of the British government. ... Norman Anthony Francis St John-Stevas, Baron St John of Fawsley, PC (born May 18, 1929), is a British Conservative politician, author and barrister. ... English Heritage is a United Kingdom government body with a broad remit of managing the historic environment of England. ... The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects in the United Kingdom. ...

The new designs for St George's Hall (the principal reception room in the palace), and The Queen's Private Chapel, approved by The Queen 24 January 1995, are very significant. 1995 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The fire, catastrophic though it was, has presented the opportunity for some major new royal architectural work. Although criticised in some circles for allegedly lacking imagination, the architects believed that given the history of the building and the surviving fabric, the new work had to be Gothic.

While the new roof for St George's Hall is a splendid example of a hammer-beam ceiling, the most stunning work is in the new chapel and adjoining cloisters. These were realigned to form a new processional route from the private apartments, through an octagonal vestibule, into St George's Hall.

The first, structural, stage of the restoration was completed May 1996. Final fitting out occurred in 1997. 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...