Princess Diana's intimate love letters to James Hewitt are set to go on sale in ... trends now
Princess Diana's intimate love letters to James Hewitt are set to go on sale in the United States for about $1million, sparking fears they will then be made public.
Former Household Cavalry officer Mr Hewitt, who had a five-year affair with the-then Princess of Wales between 1986 and 1991, kept 64 letters she wrote to him.
A US auction house has now reportedly lined up a rich collector to buy the notes, priced at up to $1million, or £780,000 - in what has been called the 'final insult' to the memory of the late princess, killed in a car crash in August 1997.
Mr Hewitt, 65, is said to have previously offered the letters - penned between 1989 and 1991 - as collateral for a £500,000 loan.
Intermediaries acting on his behalf contacted London auction house Bonhams last October with a view to selling the collection, the Sun on Sunday reported today.
Diana, Princess of Wales (pictured leaving the studios of the English National Ballet in February 1996), had an affair with James Hewitt between 1986 and 1991
Former Household Cavalary officer James Hewitt kept 66 letters Diana wrote to him
Reports suggest intermediaries for him have been contacting auction firms about the notes
Bonhams declined to sell them and recommended looking for a buyer across the Atlantic - and US auction house Heritage was then contacted.
The company based in Dallas, Texas, describes itself as the 'world's largest collectibles auctioneer'.
Ingrid Seward, author of royal book My Mother and I, said: 'James Hewitt has betrayed Diana in so many ways so this is just the final insult.
'I presume Hewitt desperately needs the money and he sees the value in these letters.
'Diana was a prolific letter writer but none of this intimate nature - it is unthinkable these notes for such a sensitive time in her life could become public.'
Diana confirmed the affair with Mr Hewitt during her now-infamous Panorama interview in 1995 with disgraced journalist Martin Bashir.
She said at the time: 'Yes, I adored him. Yes I was in love with him. But I was very let down.'
Mr Hewitt had been a young Household Cavalry officer at the time and served in the first Gulf war, commanding a tank squadron.
A now-iconic photo, taken during their secret relationship, shows Diana presenting the Captain and Subalterns Cup to Mr Hewitt after he led his Army polo team to glory at Tidworth, Wiltshire, in 1989.
After leaving the Army in 1994, he caused controversy after collaborating with Anna Pasternak, author of Princess In Love, and was reputedly paid £300,000 for sharing details of his relationship with Diana.
Less than a decade later he said he was
