James Hewitt

For other people named James Hewitt, see James Hewitt (disambiguation).
James Hewitt
Born James Lifford Hewitt
30 April 1958
Londonderry, Northern Ireland

Military career

Allegiance  United Kingdom
Service/branch British Army
Years of service 1978–1994
Rank Major
Unit HCR

James Lifford Hewitt (born 30 April 1958) is an English former household cavalry officer in the British Army. He had an affair with Diana, Princess of Wales for five years,[1][2] receiving extensive media coverage after revealing details of the affair.

Early life

Hewitt was born in Londonderry, Northern Ireland,[3] and grew up in Kent[1] and Devon. He was educated at Millfield, a public school, in Street, Somerset.[4]

Career

Military career

Having attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Hewitt was commissioned into the Life Guards, British Army, on 8 April 1978 as a second lieutenant.[5] He was promoted to lieutenant on 8 April 1980.[6] He transferred from a short service commission to a special regular commission on 1 October 1981.[7] He was promoted to captain on 8 October 1984.[8] On 21 October 1985, he transferred from a special regular commission to a regular commission.[9] In 1991, he served as a Challenger tank commander in the Gulf War.[10] He was mentioned in despatches 'in recognition of service during the operation in the Gulf' in June 1991.[11] He failed the exam for promotion to major three times.[10]

On 1 March 1994, he was retired from the British Army after 17 years military service.[12]

Later career

Hewitt opened a golf driving range in 1994.[1] Six months after his retirement, Anna Pasternak's Princess in Love, a book for which Hewitt was a major source, was published. Princess in Love by David Greene was a film released in 1996 that is based on this publication. Julie Cox and Christopher Villiers were the actress and the actor who played Diana, Princess of Wales and Hewitt respectively.[13] He opened The Polo House, a bar in the fashionable Golden Mile of Marbella, Spain, in 2009.[10] It closed in 2013 but Hewitt remained in Spain to pursue other interests.[14]

Personal life

Diana stated in her 1995 Panorama interview that she had committed adultery with Hewitt. His former military regiment declared him persona non grata at their barracks.[10]

Hewitt had considered committing suicide after his affair with Diana ended. He was preparing for a trip to France, and he wanted to shoot himself. He said, "I got in my car and loaded a few things up to get on the ferry to go to France – to shoot myself .... And then my mother insisted on coming with me. And, if she hadn't, I would have probably shot myself. So I owe her my life really".[15]

Persistent suggestions have been made in the media that Hewitt, and not Charles, is the biological father of Prince Harry. Hewitt stated to the press in 2002 that Harry had already been born by the time Hewitt and Diana began their affair, a statement also made by Diana's police bodyguard.[16]

In 2003, Hewitt tried to sell his 64 personal letters from Diana for £10 million.[1][17] The act of selling the letters was considered to be a betrayal of trust, and Sarah, Duchess of York, criticised his decision to sell these letters. She was reported to have said, "Betrayal, I think is the most horrible, horrible, disloyal thing you can do to anyone".[18]

In July 2004, Hewitt was arrested outside a restaurant in Fulham with Alison Bell, a CNN journalist, for the possession of cocaine.[19] A drunken Hewitt had 0.36 grams (0.013 oz) of cocaine in his pocket. He was given a warning, and Bell was released without charge. As a result, he was refused reinstatement of his firearms licences because of his "intemperate habits" after police found a disassembled 16-bore shotgun on his living room floor.[20]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Walden, Celia (31 Mar 2009). "James Hewitt: the comeback cad". Telegraph.co.uk (London: Telegraph Media Group Limited). Retrieved 3 August 2009.
  2. ↑ The Biography Channel article on Hewitt
  3. ↑ Walker, Andrew (10 January 2003). "James Hewitt: BBC Profile". BBC News. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  4. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 47566. p. 7138. 12 June 1978. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  5. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 48170. p. 6335. 28 April 1980. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  6. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 48970. p. 5962. 30 April 1982. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  7. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 49933. p. 15653. 19 November 1984. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  8. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 50567. p. 8047. 16 June 1986. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  9. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Ipsen, Erik (5 October 1994). "'Kiss and Tell' Officer Draws Heaps of Scorn". New York Times. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  10. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 52588. p. 14. 28 June 1991. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  11. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 53601. p. 3172. 28 February 1994. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  12. ↑ http://dianaslegacy.com/Difilms/?page_id=30
  13. ↑ Eden, Richard (2013-03-10). "Princess Diana’s lover James Hewitt suffers closure of Spanish business". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-08-03.
  14. ↑ Allen, Nick (25 April 2011). "James Hewitt 'considered suicide after Diana affair ended'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  15. ↑ "Hewitt denies Prince Harry link". BBC News. 21 September 2002.
  16. ↑ Davies, Caroline (10 January 2003). "I want £10m for Diana letters, says Hewitt". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  17. ↑ "Hewitt ready to sell Diana letters". BBC News (UK). 9 January 2003.
  18. ↑ Davies, Caroline (23 Jul 2004). "Hewitt spends night in cells after cocaine arrest with newsreader". Telegraph.co.uk (London: Telegraph Media Group Limited). Retrieved 3 August 2009.
  19. ↑ Davies, Caroline (26 Nov 2004). "'Liar' Hewitt can't have gun licences back, says judge". Telegraph.co.uk (London: Telegraph Media Group Limited). Retrieved 3 August 2009.