Princess Diana's private letters up for auction

Several dozen very personal letters from the British Princess Diana, who died in an accident in 1997, were sold for large sums at an auction in Cornwall. The 32 letters to her two close friends, Susie and Tarek Kassem, who have cherished the letters for more than 25 years, went under the hammer at Lay's Auctioneers in Penzance for around €163,660, the BBC reported.

Diana wrote the letters in the last two years of her life. In May 1996, she opened up about the hardships of her divorce from Prince Charles - now King Charles III. — noting, "If I had known a year ago what I was going to experience with this divorce, I would never have agreed — it's ugly and exasperating."

She wrote about her condition around Christmas 1996, adding: "I hope 1997 will be an easier year for all of us." She died in a car accident in Paris around eight months later. The latter letter achieved the highest amount at around 29,220 euros - more than four times as much as previously expected. The proceeds are to benefit charitable organizations that Diana and her friend supported during their lifetime.

A spokesman for the auction house emphasized that it was unusual for such personal letters to be auctioned. "She was someone who was very open and treated her friends very lovingly, as you can see in the letters," the rep said.