<P> On 20 November 1992, a major fire occurred at Windsor Castle, lasting for 15 hours and causing widespread damage to the Upper Ward . The Private Chapel in the north - east corner of the State Apartments was being renovated as part of a long term programme of work within the castle, and it is believed that one of the spotlights being used in the work set fire to a curtain by the altar during the morning . The fire spread quickly and destroyed nine of the principal state rooms and severely damaged more than 100 others . Fire - fighters applied water to contain the blaze, whilst castle staff attempted to rescue the precious artworks from the castle . Many of the rooms closest to the fire had been emptied as part of the renovation work, and this contributed to the successful evacuation of most of the collection . The fire spread through the roof voids and efforts continued through the night to contain the blaze, at great risk to the 200 fire - fighters involved . It was not until late afternoon that the blaze began to come under control, although the fire continued during the night before being officially declared over the next morning . Along with the fire and smoke damage, one of the unintended effects of the fire - fighting was the considerable water damage to the castle; more than 1.5 million gallons of water were used to extinguish it, which in many ways caused more complex restoration problems than the fire . </P> <P> Two major issues for Windsor Castle emerged following the fire . The first was a political debate in Britain as to who should pay for the repairs . Traditionally, as the property of the Crown, Windsor Castle was maintained, and if necessary repaired, by the British government in exchange for the profits made by the Crown Estate . Furthermore, like other occupied royal palaces, it was not insured on grounds of economy . At the time of the fire, however, the British press strongly argued in favour of the Queen herself being required to pay for the repairs from her private income . A solution was found in which the restoration work would be paid for by opening Buckingham Palace to the public at selected times of the year, and by introducing new charges for public access to the parkland surrounding Windsor . The second major issue concerned how to repair the castle . Some suggested that the damaged rooms should be restored to their original appearance, but others favoured repairing the castle so as to incorporate modern designs . The decision was taken to largely follow the pre-fire architecture with some changes to reflect modern tastes and cost, but fresh questions emerged over whether the restoration should be undertaken to "authentic" or "equivalent" restoration standards . Modern methods were used at Windsor to reproduce the equivalent pre-fire appearance, partially due to the cost . The restoration programme was completed in 1997 at a total cost of £ 37 million (£ 67 million in 2015 terms). </P> <P> Windsor Castle, part of the Occupied Royal Palaces Estate, is owned by Queen Elizabeth II in right of the Crown, and day - to - day management is by the Royal Household . In terms of population, Windsor Castle is the largest inhabited castle in the world and the longest - occupied palace in Europe, but it also remains a functioning royal home . As of 2006, around 500 people were living and working in the castle . The Queen has increasingly used the castle as a royal palace as well as her weekend home and it is now as often used for state banquets and official entertaining as Buckingham Palace . In recent years, Windsor Castle has hosted visits from President Mbeki of South Africa, King Abdullah II of Jordan and President Obama of the United States . The castle remains an important ceremonial location . The Waterloo ceremony is carried out in the presence of the Queen each year, and the annual ceremony of the Order of the Garter takes place in St George's Chapel . While the Queen is in residence, the Guard Mounting ceremony occurs on a daily basis . The Royal Ascot procession leaves the castle each year during the annual meeting . </P> <P> During the Queen's tenure much has been done, not only to restore and maintain the fabric of the building, but also to transform it into a major British tourist attraction, containing a significant portion of the Royal Collection of art, which is managed from Windsor . Archaeological work has continued at the castle, following on from limited investigations in the 1970s, the work on the Round Tower from 1988 to 1992 and the investigations following the 1992 fire . During 2007, 993,000 tourists visited the castle . This has had to be achieved in co-ordination with security issues and the castle's role as a working royal palace . In late 2011 two large water turbines were installed upstream of the castle on the River Thames to provide hydroelectric power to the castle and the surrounding estate . In April 2016 it was announced that the Royal Collection Trust is to fund a £ 27m project that will reinstate the original entrance hall of the castle to visitors, as well as a new café that will be housed in the 14th - century undercroft . The project is scheduled for completion at the end of 2018, and will include a visitor centre and a dedicated learning centre . </P>

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