Prince Philip: I didn't call Diana a trollop or a harlot

The Duke of Edinburgh yesterday issued an unprecedented statement denying claims that he once wrote to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, branding her "a trollop" and "a harlot".

Suspicions were aroused that the statement was a pre-emptive strike designed to take the sting out of further damaging revelations about the Royal Family.

Prince Philip's rebuttal, released by Buckingham Palace, follows allegations in the Mail on Sunday two weeks ago. Simone Simmons, a faith healer, claimed to have been shown the letters by the princess.

The palace's action re-ignited the lingering allegations about the Royal Family in the aftermath of the collapsed trial of Paul Burrell, the princess's former butler.

The statement, issued yesterday afternoon, read: "Prince Philip wishes to make it clear that at no point did he ever use the insulting terms described in media reports, nor that he was curt or unfeeling in what he wrote.

"He regards the suggestion that he used such derogatory terms as a gross misrepresentation of his relations with his daughter-in-law and hurtful to his grandsons."

The precise content of letters written by the duke to his daughter-in-law after the break-up of her marriage to the Prince of Wales has long been disputed. Prince Philip admits to having started the correspondence in June 1992, but insists it was an amicable one. His statement will fuel speculation over the whereabouts of the letters.

According Diana's sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, they were among several sensitive items, known as "the crown jewels", that went missing after her death. Mr Burrell denies knowing the whereabouts of the box.

The statement revealed that the duke has kept his own copies of the letters. It also signalled his determination to defend his ownership of their copyright, should a paper locate and try to publish them.