Prince Harry has been sued by the charity he set up in his late mother’s name (Image: Getty)
It’s not often that I say it, so believe me when I do, but I feel sorry for Prince Harry.
Just when we thought his endless rounds of court battles were finally nearing the end, Harry’s just been launched right back to the beginning. This will be the ultimate gut-punch. Game over.
Following the dramatic implosion of his charity, Sentebale, the subsequent war of words and investigation by the Charity Commission, we were all left thinking that this was as bad as it could get – but now we’ve just heard that he will be sued by the organisation he set up in his late mother’s name.
He had carried Sentebale with him for almost 20 years; it was the ultimate memorial for him to remember Diana in a space he called his second home. As he took his first tentative steps into the dizzying world that is being a senior working royal, his motive was clear – to continue his late mother’s work and make her proud. An honourable and worthy journey.
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Prince Harry set up Sentebale in Diana’s memory in 2006. (Image: Getty)
Prince Harry set up the HIV and AIDS charity in his mother’s memory. (Image: Getty)
For many years, Sentebale remained the gold standard for Harry’s image, even after he married Meghan. It was the one project he clung to that remained untainted by his determination to launch bombshells at his family, left, right and centre. It survived his numerous grievances, his self-titled Netflix series and just about every scandal thrown his way. Until it didn’t.
Sentebale was about vulnerable children in African countries like Lesotho and Botswana, not the mystical world of palace intrigue. The name itself means “forget-me-not”; for him to be sued by the very project he nobly built to keep Diana’s memory alive must feel like a visceral betrayal.
There’s no doubt about it, he will be shocked, in pain, and surely prowling around his Montecito mansion like a caged animal, bitterly working out how something that was so special to him for so long could turn around and be the thing to hurt him.
But how has it come to this? The charity’s chairwoman, Dr Sophie Chandauka, certainly didn’t mince words when she accused the Sussexes of unleashing a damaging media campaign against her. While the Charity Commission’s investigation cleared Harry of “systemic bullying,” they didn’t clear him of poor judgment. They were warned that the “war of words” that followed had damaged the charity’s reputation.
Prince Harry and Dr Chandauka (left) engaged in a war of words (Image: Getty)
Harry had cited “untenable” and “dictatorial” leadership of Dr Chandauka; in return, she accused the charity of “poor governance, weak executive management, abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny, misogynoir” and Harry’s steadfast determination to “play the victim card”.
This is a heartbreaking loss for Harry, but we all know that victimhood has been his main currency for many years. It’s what he has used to fuel his television interviews, book, Netflix series and countless keynote speeches. We all know his grievances; how could we not by this point?
The lawsuit doesn’t just signal a collapse of trust; it’s a total identity crisis. When your own creation sues you for defamation, you’ve lost more than the narrative – you’ve lost everything you once stood for. If this case proceeds, it will be the ultimate tragedy played out in the High Court. Given his well-known determination to be the guard at the gates of his mother’s legacy, there really is no greater loss for him.
