Sep 11, 2006, 13:06 GMT
Paul Burrell, the former butler of Britain's late Princess Diana, has caused outrage by claiming her sons have failed to defend her memory.
Burrell - who is currently promoting his latest book about the late princess, 'The Way We Were' - claims he is the only person left to "protect" her memory.
In an interview with US TV show 'Good Morning America', he said: "I feel a moral obligation to the princess to stand up and say, 'This is the way we were.' I'm still in that corner waving my flag. Who else is?
"The royal family aren't, her ex-husband isn't and sadly her children aren't."
The comment has infuriated those close to Princes William and Harry who do not speak publicly about their mother because they believe it is undignified, and regard Burrell with contempt for repeatedly doing so.
A senior Buckingham Palace source told Britain's Daily Mail newspaper: "His comments are extremely offensive and couldn't be further from the truth.The boys have spoken out about their mother on a number of occasions, most recently when an Italian magazine published extremely distressing photographs of their dying mother earlier this summer.
"Harry also launched a charity in memory of his mother this year called Sentebale - which means 'forget me not'."
Friends of the young princes said they were "sickened" by the personal nature of Burrell's attack for the purpose of selling his latest "kiss and tell" book.
One said: "No one is fooled with his protestations. This is all about making money out of their mother's memory.
"But attacking the princess's sons - who she fought tooth and nail to protect when she was alive - is an unprecedented low, even for him."
(C) BANG Media International
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