It was one of the defining events that made up HRH Elizabeth II’s “annus horribilis” in 1992 (well, alongside her offspring, who were knee-deep in affairs and divorce at the time): the fire that gutted her beloved Windsor Castle.
The tragedy is covered in episode four of the new series of The Crown, and shows the Queen (Imelda Stauton) looking on, stunned, as a newsreel plays in the background, with the presenter saying: “I was talking to one of the queen’s aides and he said she’s like any mother watching her own home burn down. She’s obviously absolutely devastated.”
Large parts of the castle were gutted by the flames, which apparently went up “like tinder” and burned for 15 hours, and the repairs ended up costing £36.5 million. But what caused the fire in the first place?
How the fire broke out
There was no act of arson behind the blaze, just an errant high-level spotlight which had been pressing up against 9-metre long curtains by the altar in the Queen’s private chapel. At around 11.20am on 20 November, some of the agents of the royal household were inspecting the artworks in the chapel when the fire was first flagged in the watch room.
The blaze quickly jumped to other areas of the castle; the state apartments, St George’s hall, Brunswick tower, the Crimson and Green drawing rooms and a large banqueting hall were all hit by fierce flames.
Windsor Castle had its own 20-person fire brigade, but extra reinforcements were quickly called in from Reading fire station. An hour later, there were 25 fire trucks attending, with more than 200 firefighters from neighbouring counties. However, the ceilings and floors began to fall in, with the Brunswick tower being razed to the ground.
Was anybody hurt?
Thankfully, there were no fatalities, but six people sustained minor injuries. Dean Lansdale, a decorator in the Private Chapel, burnt his hands while removing pictures – of which he rescued three or four – and five firefighters were taken to hospital with related injuries. Prince Andrew had been staying at Windsor at the time of the fire, but escaped unharmed. The Queen arrived later to survey the devastation herself.
What was the damage to objects inside the castle?
Items that didn’t make it out from the fire and were lost for good included the Sir William Beechey portrait George III and the Prince of Wales Reviewing Troops, a five-metre 1820s sideboard by Morel and Seddon, a double-sided 19th century Henry Willis organ as well as chandeliers and various porcelain items. The carpet from the 1851 Great Exhibition was also partly burnt. The New York Times quoted Peter Brooke, then Secretary of State for National Heritage, calling the fire “a national disaster”. However, The Times noted that the toll on the artworks could have been far worse, were it not for some objects being moved from their usual places because of rewiring work, and that some of the paintings were part of a touring exhibition.
As per The Independent, a report later released by Buckingham Palace explained: “The team were also able to confirm that the spotlight had recently been refitted - but that its angle and direction of facing could not be established - and that the curtaining had probably been pushed towards the lighting by a large picture frame having been placed up against it.”
Who fixed the castle, and at what cost?
Interestingly, occupied royal castles aren’t insured (as they are too valuable) and the Royal Collection is not insured against loss, so the Queen had to do more than just rummage around the back of a sofa to cover the almost £40 million refit and refurb costs. The Queen’s bank, Coutts, announced that it would be opening an independent trust for private donations, but the public would pay for 70 percent of the fee, by Elizabeth opening up the palaces for tourism and charging entry. According to the BBC the Queen threw £2 million of her own money into the kitty, and agreed to start paying income tax from 1993.
The castle was restored by Donald Insall Associates and was completed in November 1997, five years after the fire. The current Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate, are due to move into the castle as their new residence, after being given their new titles.
