Queen Elizabeth promises to privately address issues of race raised by Meghan and Harry

Tensions have ruptured couple's relationship with Prince Charles and Prince William

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Reuters

Queen Elizabeth II has broken her silence with a statement expressing the British royal family's sadness at the allegations levelled by her grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle.

Buckingham Palace said the claims about race that were raised by the couple in an interview with Oprah Winfrey would be addressed by the monarchy.

"The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan," it said.

The Buckingham Palace statement. AP

"The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. Whilst some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.

"Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much-loved family members."

That assertion "some recollections may vary" was closely scrutinised in the UK after the intervention. While many welcomed Buckingham Palace open response to the claim an unidentified royal had asked about the colour of son Archie's skin, others saw the wording as pointing to a difficult reckoning between conflicting accounts.

In their interview, Prince Harry and Meghan told Winfrey that the royal relative had made remarks on “how dark” the skin tone of their then unborn son’s skin tone.

The allegations have deepened the controversy over the interview. A post-broadcast poll has show support for stripping the couple of their royal titles. Among those aged 45 and older, 62 per cent were in favour of the couple losing their royal status, with 21 per cent saying they should retain the Sussex dukedom. The divide was smaller among younger people. For those aged 18 to 44, 38 per cent called for them to forgo their titles, while 36 per cent said they should keep their status.

The comments were not made by the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Harry said.

He made it clear that tensions had ruptured relations with Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, and his brother, Prince William.

Prince Harry detailed the depth of the family divisions that led the couple to step away from royal duties and move to California last year.

The couple dropped their bombshell while Prince Harry’s 99-year-old grandfather, Prince Philip, remains in hospital in London after a heart procedure.

With so many factors in play, Queen Elizabeth has appeared to struggle to balance her sometimes-conflicting roles as monarch and grandmother.

Angela Levin, author of Harry, a Biography of a Prince, said the delay between the interview airing and the release of the statement show how hard the situation was for the head of the family.

But Levin said there was little doubt that ultimately Elizabeth, 94, would make her decision based on what was best for the 1,000-year-old institution she has led since 1952.

The monarch's reticence echoed her widely criticised response to the death of Princess Diana in 1997.

Britain's press blasted the royal family for being cold and uncaring when the queen initially refused to drop the Royal Standard to half staff and took nearly a week to release a public statement expressing her grief.

Royal biographer Andrew Morton said the fallout from the interview would “shudder down through the generations in the same way that Diana’s did”.

Morton drew parallels with Diana's infamous Panorama  interview in 1995, in which she accused royal aides of being 'the enemy" and questioned Prince Charles' suitability as king.

Prince Harry described feeling "really let down" by his father, who stopped taking his phone calls for a while.

He said Charles – the queen's heir – and his elder brother William were trapped by the conventions of the monarchy.

"They don't get to leave. And I have huge compassion for that," he told Winfrey.

Meghan, who is of mixed race, said she was naively unprepared for life in the pressure cooker of the royal family.

But she said she was denied help for a mental health crisis and was the target of lies in an incident involving her sister-in-law, William's wife Kate.

She said her depression was exacerbated by concern about the skin colour of her unborn son.

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  Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, Meghan the Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry watch a flypast of Royal Air Force aircraft pass over Buckingham Palace in London. AP Photo

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  Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex leave after visiting Canada House in London after their recent stay in Canada. AP Photo

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  Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, arrive to greet members of the public in Kingfisher Bay on Fraser Island in Queensland, Australia October 22, 2018. Reuters

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  Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meet with a local surfing community group, known as OneWave, raising awareness for mental health and wellbeing in a fun and engaging way at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. AP Photo

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  Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex hold their baby son Archie during a photocall in St George's Hall at Windsor Castle, in Berkshire, Britain May 8, 2019. Reuters

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  Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, visits Auwal Mosque on Heritage Day with Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, during their royal tour of South Africa on September 24, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. Getty Images

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  Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, pose for a photo with the New York Yankees before their game against the Boston Red Sox at London Stadium on June 29, 2019 in London, England. The game was in support of the Invictus Games Foundation. Getty Images

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  Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, dance as they visit a Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township, during their royal tour of South Africa on September 23, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. Getty Images

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  Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex attend a service marking the centenary of WW1 armistice at Westminster Abbey on November 11, 2018 in London, England. Getty Images

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  Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, visit an exhibition of Tongan handicrafts, mats and tapa cloths at the Fa'onelua Convention Centre on October 26, 2018 in Nuku'alofa, Tonga. Getty Images

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  Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, meet with local children as they arrive at Dubbo Airport on October 17, 2018 in Dubbo, Australia. Getty Images

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  Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and his new wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, leave from the West Door of St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, in Windsor on May 19, 2018 in Windsor, England. Getty Images

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  Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Susse, arrive for a visit to "Justice desk", an NGO in the township of Nyanga in Cape Town, as they begin their tour of the region on September 23, 2019. AFP

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  Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, chats with Disney CEO Robert Iger as Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, embraces US singer-songwriter Beyoncé as they attend the European premiere of the film The Lion King in London on July 14, 2019. AFP

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  Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, joined by her mother, Doria Ragland, show their new son to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at Windsor Castle, Windsor, England. AP Photo

"I ... just didn't want to be alive any more. And that was a very clear and real and frightening constant thought," she said.