Harry and Wills seemed to be fans of James Hewitt

Prince William and Prince Harry were very close with their mother Princess Diana, and this meant they were often around those who were close to her.

Allegedly, this meant that the two boys spent a lot of time with her reported lover, James Hewitt.

Prince William and Harry’s ‘relationship’ with James Hewitt

Although William and Harry’s parents’ relationship was struggling, the two young royals reportedly managed to form a good relationship with Hewitt.

During their 11 years together, Charles and Diana were plagued by affair rumours.

As per Robert Lacey’s book, Battle of Brothers, James Hewitt was recruited to give Diana riding lessons. But, he apparently charmed Princess Diana in and out of the saddle.

James Hewitt had a close relationship with Princess Diana (Credit: SplashNews.com)

James Hewitt’s ‘influence’ on William and Harry

Lacey claims that Wills and Harry also got along with Hewitt. He believes that his influence may have even influenced the army element of their careers.

Unbeknownst to the two princes, Princess Diana and James Hewitt’s relationship was reportedly more than just friendly.

And in the meantime, according to the book, the boys had begun to nickname him “Uncle James”.

Prior to that, Diana’s boys had reportedly spent “long hours on horseback,” with Hewitt who helped them improve their riding technique.

Lacey goes on to suggest how being taken to the cavalry barracks by Hewitt surely moulded William and Harry’s ambitions.

He thinks so as the two boys got to “experience the thrill of mingling with real-life soldiers in uniform,” at a young age.

According to reports, Hewitt even had genuine khaki uniforms “complete with small boots and Guards insignia” made for the boys.

“‘I’m going to be a soldier when I grow up,’ Harry was once heard to declare while clambering into the turret of a tank. And when the time came, the prince joined the Guards, just like Hewitt,” Lacey penned.

Harry and William’s ‘nickname’ for James Hewitt

“They called him ‘Uncle James’, and drove down with him and Diana quite regularly to stay in Devon for breaks with his approachable and natural mother Shirley, who ran a riding school,” he went on to claim.

Princess Diana was very close with her sons (Credit: Daily Mail / Shutterstock)
However, another royal author went on to dismiss some of Mr Lacey’s claims.

Princess In Love author Anna Pasternak condemned Lacey’s claims that she had portrayed Diana as reckless about her relationship with Hewitt.

Pasternak criticised the “brutal” Battle of Brothers author in an opinion piece for Tatler.

Princess Diana’s affair ‘exposed’

Opposing the the version of events penned in Battle of Brothers, she wrote: “Why would I write such a damning view of Diana when I was sympathetic to her, describing the devoted mother she was? I specifically wrote in Princess in Love: ‘During their days at Highgrove, they were careful not to let William or Harry have so much as a glimpse of their secret.’”

The 1994 book went on to sell 500,000 copies. It even was said to have encouraged Princess Diana to admit to her relationship with Hewitt in her tell-all Panorama interview the following year.

“Yes, I was in love with him, but I was very let down,” Diana said of Hewitt in the interview.

Princess Diana’s love letters to Hewitt

Anna Pasternak went on to explain that she based her book on 64 letters the two lovers had reportedly exchanged.

She claimed: “Often Diana wrote to him twice a day. No mundane detail, including the colour of her nail polish, was overlooked. The most heartfelt letter read, ‘I have lain awake at night loving you desperately and thanking God for bringing you into my life – my darling one, you are the most magical and special person I’ve ever met, and how extraordinarily lucky I am to have been loved by you.’”

Royal Insider has contacted Kensington Palace and Prince Harry’s representatives for comment.