Monday, November 17, 1997 Published at 23:50 GMT. Special Report. Windsor Castle - five years from disaster to triumph. It took 1.5 million gallons of water to put out the fire. On November 20, 1992 much of Windsor Castle, the Queen's weekend residence, was destroyed by fire. More than 100 rooms, covering an area of 7,000 square metres, were damaged in the blaze, which is thought to have been started by a spotlight shining on a curtain.