Prince Harry has been accused of sending an 'unpleasant and imperious' message to the boss of his Africa-based charity after she refused to defend his wife Meghan in public.
The Duke of Sussex contacted Sentebale chairman Dr Sophie Chandauka following a tense exchange between her and the Duchess at a charity polo match last year.
The dispute has culminated in Harry's resignation from the charity he launched nearly two decades ago.
Dr Chandauka, who ran Sentebale since 2023, has since accused the Duke of “harassment and bullying at scale” amid infighting within the organisation.
But sources close to Sentebale’s former trustees said Dr Chandauka's comments are a "deflection" and “baseless”.
Sources close to the Prince have also called the claims “baseless” and “highly misleading”.
I would personally like to thank the Sussex Squad who originally shared this video on Instagram
— MeghansMole©️ (@MeghansMole) March 30, 2025
They did a great job exposing Meghan Markle’s atrocious treatment of Dr Sophie Chandauka
🤭🤭 pic.twitter.com/YENapNsrhG
In an interview on Sky News’ Trevor Phillips on Sunday, Dr Chandauka accused Harry and his wife Meghan of allowing his Netflix show Polo to ruin a major Sentebale fundraising event in April 2024.
Dr Chandauka claimed that the Duchess caused 'disruption' when she turned up at the Royal Salute Polo Challenge in Wellington, Florida with Tennis icon Serena Williams — despite previously confirming that she would not be attending.
A newly-resurfaced clip from the event shows Meghan forcing Dr Chandauka to duck under the polo trophy, just moments before she kissed her husband Harry in front of the cameras to celebrate his win.
Shortly after the event, the Harry allegedly messaged Dr Chandauka demanding that she "explain herself" after she refused to be drawn into a row about perceived tensions with Meghan.
Sources told The Telegraph that the Duke’s note was “unpleasant” in tone and used “imperious” language, leaving Dr Chandauka upset.
A spokesman for Sentebale reportedly confirmed to the newspaper that the Duke had sent the message, saying: 'This is true. There is a document.’
Founded in 2006 by Harry and Prince Seeiso of Lesotho in memory of the Duke’s late mother Princess Diana, Sentebale dedicates itself to tackling poverty and Aids in both Lesotho and Botswana.
However, Sentebale was plunged into civil war last week when the Duke announced his "truly heartbroken" decision to resign as patron following a breakdown in his relationship with Dr Chandauka.
Meanwhile, Dr Chandauka has accused the duke of being involved in a “cover-up” of an investigation into bullying, harassment and misogyny at the organisation, which employs more than 500 people.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have yet to formally respond to the allegations.
