Dire need to make Bootcamp work with Thunderbolt Display
As the source of that info is Apple themselves, you'd imagine that they're probably best placed to offer advice on the subject.

This suggests that the 'fault' is not just Apple's, but requires Windows to be complicit. It would appear Windows 8 is capable, but requires the latest Apple hardware too.

Quote


  Are Thunderbolt devices “hot pluggable” using Windows with Boot Camp?
  The iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014) and the Mac mini (Late 2014) support “hot pluggable” Thunderbolt devices using Windows 8 or 8.1 (both as 64-bit only).
  For all other Mac computers, Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 scans and activates Thunderbolt devices connected to Thunderbolt ports only during the Windows startup process. If your device was not plugged in at start up, Windows will not detect it without a restart.