Prince Harry redirected his 2025 share of proceeds from the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund to an elephant-conservation organization in Botswana, ending a yearslong pattern of sending the money to Sentebale as his relationship with the charity he co-founded deteriorated into a legal dispute.
Royal Foundation accounts show £5,432 attributable to Harry was donated to Elephants Without Borders, a Botswana-based conservation group founded by biologist Dr. Mike Chase. The money helped support satellite tracking of two elephants in the Okavango Delta named Archie and Lili after Harry and Meghan Markle's children.
The change represents a notable shift in the destination of money associated with Princess Diana's charitable legacy. Between 2020 and 2024, Sentebale received £43,866 from Harry's share, including a final recorded payment of £16,743 in 2024.
The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund was created after Diana's death in 1997 and formally closed in 2012. The Royal Foundation assumed legal control of the fund the following year, allowing it to continue receiving occasional donations and legacies.
After Harry and Prince William separated their charitable operations, the brothers agreed to divide future proceeds connected to the Diana fund. Harry designated Sentebale, which he founded with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho in 2006 to support vulnerable children and young people in southern Africa, including those affected by HIV and AIDS.
By 2025, however, Harry's relationship with Sentebale had broken down. A dispute involving Harry, Prince Seeiso, trustees and Sentebale Chair Dr. Sophie Chandauka culminated in Harry and several others stepping down from the organization.
Chandauka accused Harry of bullying and harassment, allegations that Harry and those close to him disputed. The Charity Commission later said it found no evidence of widespread or systemic bullying or harassment at Sentebale and no evidence of over-reach by either Harry or Chandauka, while making clear that it hadn't adjudicated individual bullying or harassment allegations.
The regulator nevertheless criticized those involved for allowing the internal dispute to spill into public view. It said the failure to resolve disagreements privately had damaged Sentebale's reputation and risked weakening public confidence in the charity.
The conflict subsequently moved into court. Sentebale filed a defamation claim against Harry and former trustee Mark Dyer in London's High Court on March 24, 2026, alleging the two were involved in an adverse media campaign that caused reputational and operational damage. Harry and Dyer have disputed the allegations.
The Royal Foundation accounts don't state that the Sentebale dispute prompted Harry to redirect his Diana-related proceeds. They establish only that the destination changed in 2025, meaning any causal connection between the boardroom conflict and the donation to Elephants Without Borders remains unconfirmed.
Botswana, however, has longstanding personal significance for Harry. He has worked with Chase on conservation projects and has maintained ties to Elephants Without Borders for years. Harry and Meghan also traveled to Botswana early in their relationship and participated in elephant-conservation work.
Meghan later narrated Disney's Elephant, with proceeds benefiting Elephants Without Borders, while Harry worked with the organization during the Sussexes' 2019 tour of southern Africa.
The £5,432 donation supported the satellite collaring of two elephants, enabling conservationists to track their movements through the Okavango Delta. The animals were named after Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, with Archie selecting blue for his namesake elephant's collar and Lilibet choosing purple for hers.
