Blenheim Palace: Fire service helps remove 200-year-old flagpole

Firefighter James Brooks-Foster was part of a team removing a 200-year-old flagpole from Blenheim Palace

A fire service has helped remove a 200-year-old flagpole during Blenheim Palace's £2m conservation project.

The scheme will see the glass ceiling of the Oxfordshire building's 18th Century orangery replaced with timber and slate to match the original design.

During the renovation, the Flagstaff roof will also return to lead, which means the flagpole had to be removed.

Rewley Road fire crew used the task as an exercise in using a hydraulic platform at a historic building.

Rewley Road fire crew used the task as an exercise in using a hydraulic platform at a historic building

The roof of Flagstaff at the Grade-1 listed building was originally completely lead but is currently half lead and half corrugated metal due to cost saving during earlier repairs.

The flagpole, which is made from timber, was previously reduced in height by approximately 2m (6.56ft) because it was unsafe.

On Wednesday, a team of firefighters helped remove it and Blenheim Palace said it would return to its position in the autumn.

A spokesperson for Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service posted on social media: "This was a great opportunity for firefighters to maintain their skills with the hydraulic platform, working in unfamiliar environments around an historic and extremely prestigious heritage building within Oxfordshire."

The flagpole is made from timber and had previously been reduced in height by 2m because it was unsafe

The decision to return the Flagstaff roof and orangery ceiling to their originally intended materials is part of an effort to combat the effects of climate change, according to Blenheim Palace.

Head of built heritage at the property, Kelly Whitton said: "Slate combined with modern insulation will be a far more effective insulator than glass, saving energy and helping Blenheim reach its green goals."

"Due to the pressures of climate change and noticeable temperature swings, we are proposing to return the roof back to slate."

Morwenna Slade, who is head of historic building climate change adaptation at Historic England, said: "Climate change presents a range of challenges to the continued care and use of our historic buildings and sites.

"Thoughtful projects such as this demonstrate how conservation can be used to respond to the impacts of climate change, forming positive and proactive solutions."