Did Princess Diana's Butler Do It?

LONDON, June 16, 2008 — -- Princess Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell, and his brother-in-law engaged in a war of words in London tabloids this weekend over new sensational allegations about the royal family.

The former butler's brother-in-law, Ron Cosgrove, told the British newspaper, The News of the World, that Burrell had sexual relations with Princess Diana, and saw The Queen naked.

Burrell has been a provocative figure since Princess Diana's divorce. His subsequent actions have driven Princes William and Harry to accuse him of a "cold and overt betrayal" of their mother.

In The Daily Mail, Cosgrove insisted that he was driven by the motivation to reveal the true nature of his sister's husband in order "to safeguard her own future interests."

Meanwhile, Burrell released a statement: "Myself and my wife feel tremendously sad and hurt that he has resorted to such vengeance by way of response."

Despite the physical distance between the Burrells — Maria Burrell lives in England for most of the year, while her husband lives in his villa in Florida — they remain united, especially in their disgust over Cosgrove.

Maria Burrell's unwavering loyalty to her husband, despite the continuous controversy that surrounds him, overrides her family loyalty. According to The Daily Mail, she claims to be "mortified and hugely embarrassed" by her brother's actions.

Burrell has said that Cosgrove lacks any understanding of the "boundaries and decencies of royal service." He described the claims as "fanciful, distasteful and malicious."

After all, Burrell asks, why would he confide his own infidelity to the brother of the wife he was supposed to be betraying?

However, just how much Burrell lives up to his own description of integrity is debatable, especially in the light of his sensationalist novel "A Royal Duty," published in 2003.