PRINCESS Diana’s intimate love letters to James Hewitt have been offered for sale in the US in what has been called his “last insult” to her memory.
A US auction house has persuaded a wealthy collector to buy 64 notes worth up to $1m (£780,000) — sparking fears they could be made public.
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Diana’s intimate love letters to James Hewitt offered for sale Credit: Getty
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The move is being called his ‘last insult’ to her memory – Picture James HewittCredit: Splash News
Former army officer Hewitt, now 65, previously offered the letters as collateral for a £500,000 loan.
They were written between 1989 and 1991, including the period when Hewitt – who had a secret five-year relationship with the princess until 1992 – served in the Gulf War.
Written in Diana’s signature script, they are very intimate and would embarrass the royal family if published.
Ingrid Seward, author of the royal book My Mother and I, said: “James Hewitt betrayed Diana in so many ways so this is just the latest insult.
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“I guess Hewitt is desperate for money and sees value in these letters.
“Diana was a prolific writer of letters, but none of this intimate nature.
“It is inconceivable that these notes for such a sensitive time in her life could become public.”
The Sun on Sunday can reveal that in October last year brokers on Hewitt’s behalf contacted top London auction house Bonhams with a view to selling the cache.
Experts at the firm have valued the hoard – which includes many sent on the distinctive military paper known as “Blueys” – at between $400,000 (£311,000) and $600,000 (£466,000).
In an email, the company said: “We believe an open market auction would almost certainly be the best way to get the best price.”
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However, Bonhams refused to sell them and advised that a buyer was sought in the US.
An expert at the company wrote: “We would recommend a sale in the US as there appears to be more potential buyers at this level there and as the sale is likely to be less contentious than in the UK.”
Rival London auction house Sotheby’s was approached about the letters a month earlier.
They refused to estimate what they might be worth.
American auction house Heritage, based in Dallas, Texas, was then contacted.
It claims to be “the world’s largest auctioneer of collectibles”.
A spokesman for Hewitt told The Sun on Sunday: “Heritage Auctions was approached on behalf of James Hewitt’s representative for the sole purpose of valuing and authenticating the letters for personal and insurance reasons.
“He has no intention of selling and is not seeking offers to buy.”
But an email sent by the Heritage boss in late January said: “After much discussion, it has been decided that the best way to proceed is to work with a likely potential buyer who they already have in mind for a private sale.
“They (Heritage partners) feel that this would remove the letters from appearing at public auctions for a long time and remove us from any negative outcome.”
The email then discusses arrangements for “the material to be fully insured for $1 million.”
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Diana gives a cup to lover Hewitt at a polo match Credit: Camera Press
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The letters were written between 1989 and 1991, including when Hewitt was serving in the Gulf War
When The Sun approached Heritage Auctions executive vice president Joe Maddalena at their Dallas headquarters on Sunday, he said: “We can’t comment, I can’t comment.
“I really don’t know what you’re talking about. I can’t comment on that. No comment.”
It is not the first time that Hewitt – the commander of a tank squadron in the Gulf – has been accused of trying to cash in documents.
Diana would later speak of her “total betrayal” by Hewitt, who she believed had burned them.
The princess, who first met Hewitt at a party hosted by her lady-in-waiting, Hazel West, in 1986, confirmed the relationship in a 1995 BBC interview with Martin Bashir.
In it she said: “Yes, I adored him. Yes, I was in love with him. But I was very disappointed.”
She officially divorced the then Prince Charles in 1996 before she died the following year in a car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris along with her partner Dodi Fayed and their driver Henri Paul.
Two years later, in an agreement with the Spencer family’s lawyers, Hewitt promised to store the letters in a safe place, never to be sold, and to be destroyed when he died.
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Former army officer Hewitt, now 65, previously offered the letters as collateral for a £500,000 loanCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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The princess, who first met Hewitt at a party in 1986, confirmed the relationship in her BBC interview with Martin Bashir in 1995. Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
They were then reluctantly returned to him by the royal family, under threat of legal action, after a national newspaper handed them over to the police, who received them from another of his exes.
In 2000, Hewitt was involved in a newspaper scandal in which it was revealed that he had proposed selling memorabilia for £10 million.
Three years later, he admitted live on CNN that he wanted to sell the 64 letters the couple had exchanged for the right price.
He told talk show host Larry King that they were “important historical documents” and that it would be “irresponsible” not to sell them.
He said they were “extremely well written and nothing to be ashamed of”.
Around this time, it was reported that senior members of the royal family and Diana’s executors were considering the possibility of acquiring the letters.
Their existence was known as early as 1994.
Author Anna Pasternak said she read them while researching her book, Princess In Love, about Diana and Hewitt’s affair.
The written words are the copyright of Diana’s estate, which is managed by her sisters and other family members.
However, legal experts said copyright would not be infringed if they were displayed in a museum or exhibition, for example, rather than published.
Hewitt earned around £100,000 from Pasternak’s book and a hefty sum for his memoirs.
He also cashed in by appearing in reality TV on an affair with a princess.
He now lives under his widowed mother’s roof, sharing her two-bedroom flat in an old, converted mansion in the Devon village of Farringdon.
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American Heritage auction house based in Dallas, TexasCredit: Matt Symons
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