has lashed out at the "blatant lies" levelled against his charity Sentebale, which has been at the centre of a high-profile race row. In a statement in memory of his late mother, the Duke of Sussex said he hoped the Charity Commission would uncover "the truth" about a bitter boardroom battle.

Over the past week, by Sentebale's chairwoman after. On Thursday, the watchdog announced it had opened a regulatory compliance case regarding the concerns raised. They said it was now in direct contact with those involved, "to gather evidence" and assess whether the charity and its trustees past and present had fulfilled their legal duties.

The Duke has now responded to the row for the first time, saying: "What has transpired over the last week has been heartbreaking to witness, especially when such blatant lies hurt those who have invested decades in this shared goal."

It comes after he and Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, who he co-founded Sentebale with in 2006, quit as patrons alongside a string of trustees.

They left over a dispute with its chairwoman, Dr Sophie Chandauka, declaring that the "relationship between the charity's trustees and the chair of the board had broken down beyond repair".

The chair hit back at the mass exodus and issued a statement in which she alleged there had been "poor governance, weak executive management, abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny, misogynoir".

And in an explosive TV interview on Sunday, the Zimbabwean lawyer claimed the duke had tried to "eject" her from the charity through "bullying" and "harassment".

Both Harry and the charity's boss have welcomed the investigation.

"From the inception of Sentebale nearly 20 years ago, Prince Seeiso and I have had a clear goal: to support the children and young people in Southern Africa in memory of our mothers.

"What has transpired over the last week has been heartbreaking to witness, especially when such blatant lies hurt those who have invested decades in this shared goal.

"No one suffers more than the beneficiaries of Sentebale itself.

"On behalf of the former trustees and patrons, we share in the relief that the Charity Commission confirmed they will be conducting a robust inquiry.

"We fully expect it will unveil the truth that collectively forced us to resign.

"We remain hopeful this will allow for the charity to be put in the right hands immediately, for the sake of the communities we serve."

It marks the first time the Duke has publicly responded to the row, though his old Etonian school friend Alex Rayner told the Daily Mail earlier in the week that Harry was "shocked" about Dr Chandauka's allegations.

In an interview with Sky News, the chair called the Sussexes' brand "toxic" and accused Harry of "harassment and bullying at scale".

She also described how the prince's Netflix deal interfered with a scheduled fundraising event and how she refused Harry's request to make a statement in support of his wife after an awkward exchange between them was caught on camera.

Harry was later accused of sending an "unpleasant" and "imperious" message to Dr Chandauka after she failed to publicly quash rumours of a rift with Meghan.

Mr Rayner said: "The way he feels is as if he has had one of his fingers cut off.... At the moment he is just in total shock about what is being said and the accusations being made."

A source close to the trustees and patrons described Ms Chandauka's interviews as a "publicity stunt", adding: "They remain firm in their resignation, for the good of the charity, and look forward to the adjudication of the truth."

Sentebale was one of a small number of private patronages the Duke kept after he was stripped of his honorary military positions after he stepped down as a senior working royal.

He founded the charity with Prince Seeiso to help young people and children in southern Africa, particularly those living with HIV and Aids.