🔗 Share this article

As the crowning ceremony of Queen Elizabeth was televised globally, a small boy was glued to a black and white television at his home in New York City.

Mary Anne MacLeod Trump sat enthralled before the screen, not moving the entire day of 2 June 1953.

That boy was Donald Trump.

In later years, as a real estate tycoon, he shared the impact his mother’s admiration for the British royals had on him in his book The Art of the Deal.

He gained his "flair for drama" from her, writing she was "fascinated with the grandeur and ritual."

His profound interest for formal spectacle – coupled with his sense of theatricality – is set to be evident when Trump journeys back to Windsor for his second state visit to the UK.

The invitation from the monarch was hand-delivered by Prime Minister Keir Starmer during a meeting, in what was seen as a direct appeal to Trump’s love of ceremony.

Trump’s trip to the UK will be unprecedented – he is the only president granted two state visits.

The year before, he was received by the deceased Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle, and his mother was top of his mind.

One-time national security aide, Fiona Hill, noted that he repeatedly discussed his mother’s high regard for the royal family.

Being introduced to the Queen in his first term was an obsession as it represented the "clearest indicator that he achieved greatness."

In the wake of the royal audience, he stated to Piers Morgan during a conversation: "I was walking, I remarked, ‘Just think my mother witnessing this sight?’"

This interest toward the royal household was clear from the beginning.

An urban planner who collaborated with Trump for 10 years recounts the businessman seeking to "gin up interest" in his Florida property by suggesting Lady Di’s name as a prospective member.

Trump was regarded at the time as an outsider, and the press quoted high society who were unconvinced of the supposed royal interest.

"It seems like a strategic effort to boost prestige," one woman was quoted as saying.

Someone familiar with the membership drive revealed that Trump extended Prince Charles a complimentary membership, but got back a courteous rejection.

Alternatively, the response proposed he could make a donation to environmental causes.

Mr Blackman noted too how Trump became fixated with the reply.

"For him, it’s always been a big deal for Donald Trump to be seen as historic," he said.

During the 1980s, the press suggested that Charles and Diana were considering acquiring a luxury condo in Trump Tower.

This story, many have said, was almost certainly started by Trump himself.

An official rebuttal was subsequently released by the royal household, stating "there was no truth."

A former representative for the Queen noted that Trump was not part of the royals’ awareness at that time.

"Many have leveraging royal names forever," he said. "Their policy is never complain."

The businessman mentioned the situation in The Art of the Deal, writing he did not verify or rebut the speculation, but said it helped promote Trump Tower.

More than two decades later, he allegedly invited the Prince to his marriage ceremony to Melania Knauss.

The event was held in the private club, in a spacious ballroom inspired by Louis XIV’s Hall of Mirrors.

Expert Kristen Meinzer says Trump has spent a lifetime trying to style himself in the same mould as the royals.

"After purchasing Mar a Lago, he practically took on the crest of the previous owners," she said.

To Trump, the British throne holds a international standing that he desires.

"The royal family is the peak of high society that he’s always wanted to join," says analyst Peter Harris.

"On the other hand is he just wants publicity… it merges these aspects in one family."

When he travels there, he expects he’ll get attention, media moments, meet the King, and nobody will say anything bad during the event.

One royal especially held Trump’s interest.

Within another publication The Art of the Comeback that his only "missed chance in the women department" was that he did not get the option to date Princess Diana.

He said she "had a glow" and was "extraordinary."

But, as reported by former BBC presenter Selina Scott, Trump made efforts to date Princess Diana after her divorce from Prince Charles.

In her account, Diana told her that Trump made her feel "uneasy," and became increasingly concerned as flowers kept arriving at her home.

Shortly after her passing, in a Howard Stern show, Trump claimed that he could have slept with the late Princess.

Years after, he said there was any personal attraction, and only considered her to be "beautiful."

Statements on other women in the monarchy have been negative.

Years ago, he blamed Kate, the now-Princess of Wales, for unauthorized images taken while she was sunbathing.

Trump has also called Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, "unpleasant" and "nasty," while she referred to him as "divisive" and "biased."

Such comments will impact the {state visit|official trip|royal