But being the nation’s most-watched couple has not been easy for the Trumps; their union had been criticized because of their 24-year age gap and Donald’s track record of divorce and alleged sex scandals.
Donald and Melania’s love story began in New York, where the billionaire businessman met the Slovenian model in a nightclub (via Vanity Fair). Although Donald is known for his gregarious nature and Melania is considered shy, the pair shared an undeniable chemistry from the start (via ABC News). Five years after their fateful first encounter, the pair said “I do,” and a year later, they expanded their family with the birth of Donald Trump’s youngest son, Barron Trump.
Donald and Melania’s relationship was put to the test during Donald’s run for presidency, as allegations emerged that he acted inappropriately with other women. Ever the faithful wife, Melania dismissed the accusations and stood by her husband. However, there’s still speculation that they have a loveless relationship and may be headed toward divorce (via Newsweek). Here’s the truth about Melania and Donald Trump’s marriage.
Melania and Donald Trump met at a New York nightclub
Donald first laid eyes on Melania Trump — who’s undergone a stunning transformation — in 1998 at the Kit Kat Club in New York City, after being introduced by an Italian businessman. “It was a great chemistry and energy, something was there right away,” Melania revealed on Larry King Live. But in an interview with the New York Post, Melania’s friend Edit Molnar said that Donald was there with another woman, so Melania didn’t entertain his advances.
But The Donald was smitten. “I’d seen her before, on the runways and things, but her beauty utterly amazed me,” he told Tatler. Even though his playboy friends told him not to waste his time because they’d already tried to court her, he persisted and asked for Melania’s number. “But I didn’t give it to him,’ Melania recalled, “because I knew who he was and I guess… he had all these ladies, so I want to see what kind of number he will give to me.”
Although she was skeptical, Donald didn’t give her his business line, but his personal digits. She called him a few days later and the rest is history.
Donald and Melania Trump’s wedding was a lavish, star-studded affair
Melania and Donald Trump tied the knot in a $42 million-dollar ballroom at their Mar-a-Lago estate, which Donald had built from scratch. The compound is replete with 24-karat gold moldings, custom-made crystal chandeliers, and marble floors covering 11,000 square feet. Their guest list included Bill and Hillary Clinton, Billy Joel (who performed), Anna Wintour, Heidi Klum, Derek Jeter, and Shaquille O’Neal (via Today).
Melania, who was 34 at the time, wore a Christian Dior gown with a 13-foot train which reportedly cost $200,000. In fact, she graced the cover of Vogue wearing what the magazine called “the dress of the year.” Melania’s engagement ring, from Graff Jewelers, cost $75,000 (via The New York Times).
At the time, Donald was 58, and completely confident in his third union. As he told People, “If I didn’t have a great woman, I would be much more nervous.” When Larry King asked Melania if she was apprehensive on Larry King Live, she said that after being together for five years, she was confident. “We know what kind of relationship we have and I don’t think I should be scared of anything,” she shared.
Melania and Donald Trump don’t sleep in the same bedroom
To say that Donald and Melania Trump give each other space is quite the understatement. In fact, in the book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, author Michael Wolff revealed that Melania and Donald Trump don’t share a bed. He also explained that Donald has a habit of locking his wife out at night so he can indulge in cheeseburgers while watching television (via MSN).
Former housekeepers for the couple confirmed this separation to journalist Mary Jordan for her book, The Art of Her Deal: The Untold Story of Melania Trump. The women worked at Donald’s New Jersey golf course, and affirmed that the president’s residence was on the second floor, while Melania and Barron Trump slept in separate rooms on the same floor (via Meaww). “I never saw them like a normal family, sitting together at a table, eating together, talking,” one former employee told Jordan. “They spend time in the same place but they don’t interact.”
However, these arrangements don’t necessarily mean they are estranged. In an interview with Inside Edition, Jordan said, “By all accounts they do have a connection, they do have a relationship.”
Donald Trump called Melania Trump “terrific” in bed
When it comes to Melania Trump, Donald Trump doesn’t hold back from talking about their physical chemistry. In an interview with shock jock Howard Stern in 2004, Donald complimented Melania’s skills in the bedroom. “[Melania] is terrific in bed,” he boasted. “She wouldn’t want me to say that, but she is.”
In an another interview with Stern, which took place in 1999 before they were married, Melania actually revealed that she and her husband were frequently intimate. These interviews happened before Donald was elected president, and Melania didn’t seem to mind the explicit nature of the conversations. When asked about them in an interview with Dujour, she said, “Men will be men.”
In addition to commenting on their bedroom habits, Donald seldom fails to acknowledge his partner’s attractive looks. “Her beauty amazes me. It is not normal,” he told Tatler. And apparently, the feeling is mutual, as Melania has also gushed about Donald’s physical allure. “He’s a very handsome guy and sexy,” she shared. Referring to Donald Trump’s famous mane of hair, Melania called it “beautiful” and “very soft.”
Melania and Donald Trump have one son together
After he married Melania Trump, Donald Trump said he planned on having children with his new bride on an episode of Larry King Live. “I’m not going to be doing the diapers…she will be an unbelievable mother. I’ll be a good father, but I’ll be doing my deals.” Subsequently, the couple welcomed their only child, Barron Trump, in 2006. Once he was born, Donald changed his mind about the fatherly duties, telling People, “I love to feed the baby. Not because I have to, but just because I love it.”
Growing up in the penthouse of Trump Tower in New York City, Barron Trump enjoyed a lavish lifestyle; he had not only a nursery, but also a kitchen, living room, and nanny’s quarters.
Donald and Melania make sure their son is protected from the media’s scrutiny. Once Donald was sworn into office, Barron had a motorcade accompany him to school in Manhattan (via TMZ). To help him to complete his school year, Melania stayed in New York with Barron for six months, and they moved to the White House over the summer (via People).
There’s speculation that Melania Trump will divorce Donald Trump once he leaves office
On an episode of Larry King Live, Melania Trump said, “To marry a man like Donald, you need to know who you are and you need to be very strong and smart.” Only time will tell if Melania will use that strength to leave the marriage if she chooses to. A former White House aide to the president, Omarosa Manigault Newman, revealed in her book Unhinged: An Insider’s Account of the Trump White House, that the end could be near for the couple. “In my opinion, Melania is counting every minute until he is out of office and she can divorce him,” she penned (via Newsweek).
In an interview with Howard Stern, Donald Trump spoke on the importance of having Melania sign a prenuptial agreement. “I’ve written too many books about prenups not to have one,” he revealed. Indeed their financial deal is no secret, and Melania once told Tatler, “Yes, I did sign a prenup. It was very generous. It was good!”
Melania Trump is Donald Trump’s third wife
For Donald Trump, the third time’s a charm when it comes to marriage; the ladies’ man was married twice before he made it official with Melania Trump. With Donald Trump’s first wife, Ivana Trump, who he was married to from 1977 to 1992, he shares three children: Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump, who’s undergone a stunning transformation. The Trump children enjoy lavish lifestyles, and all work for their father.
While Donald was still married to Ivana, he had a public affair with actress Marla Maples. Their relationship made headlines when the New York Post released a cover with the alleged Maples quote that described Donald having prowess in bed (via the Daily Beast). Donald ultimately married Maples in 1993 and had his fourth child, Tiffany Trump, with her two months later. By 1997, they were divorced (via People).
All of Donald’s wives signed prenuptial agreements, according to In Touch Weekly. To that end, after their divorce, Ivana was awarded $25 million and their Greenwich mansion (via Business Insider). Additionally, according to Vanity Fair, Maples received $1 million plus another million for a home.
Melania and Donald Trump’s relationship has been plagued by cheating scandals
Donald Trump has a reputation for being a lothario, and during his presidential run, many women came forward with allegations that he acted inappropriately towards them (via ABC News). Standing by her man, Melania Trump adamantly defended him as he faced this scandal. In the first interview she did, after nine women came forth saying he groped them (via HuffPost), she told CNN, “I believe my husband. This was all organized from the opposition.”
Another bombshell accusation came when the press revealed that adult film star Stormy Daniels was paid hush money by Donald’s lawyer to keep a 2006 tryst with the president a secret (via CNBC). Daniels told CBS that she confronted Donald about the fact that he was married. “And he brushed it aside, said, “Oh yeah, yeah, you know, don’t worry about that. We don’t even — we have separate rooms and stuff,”” she said.
Melania did make her feelings known about the woman who allegedly slept with her husband. In a recording released by her friend and advisor Stephanie Winston Wolkoff (via Business Insider), she referred to Daniels as a sex worker, in not-so-friendly terms.
Melania Trump is frequently seen swatting Donald Trump’s hand away
There have been multiple instances where Donald Trump reaches for his wife’s hand in public, only to be swatted away by Melania Trump. In these swats seen literally around the world, many are left wondering if their marriage is in crisis. To better illustrate the lack of PDA, The Lincoln Project posted a Twitter compilation of all the times Donald was denied his wife’s hand.
Besides the lack of hand holding, the video also includes an awkward Melania Trump moment that was captured by millions. In the clip, which was filmed on Donald’s inauguration day, Melania is seen smiling at her husband — but when he turns his back, her face distorts into an obvious frown. This moment generated quite a buzz in the media, with many people taking Melania’s action to mean that she’s in an unhappy marriage. In her book Free, Melania, author Kate Bennett claims that the couple no longer says “I love you” to one another (via IBT).
“Save Melania” has trended and there is a book titled “Free Melania”
It was during Donald Trump’s inauguration that the media began commentating on Melania Trump’s possible misery. After the frown seen around the world, Melania had a very uncomfortable-looking first dance with her husband to “My Way.” During the uncomfortable dance, Donald and Melania avoided eye contact and kept a noticeable distance from one another.
Soon after those televised events, the hashtags #SaveMelania and #SadMelania began trending on Twitter. And the very next day, protesters held signs at the Women’s March that had “Free Melania” scrawled on them (via Vanity Fair). In 2019, CNN’s Kate Bennett even released a book titled Free Melania, in which she paints the portrait of a jaded First Lady. In the tell-all, she claims that after the Stormy Daniels scandal, Melania purposely arrived separately to the State of the Union address, refused to go with Donald on an overseas trip, or hold his hand after a flight (via The Guardian).
In fact, early on in their courtship, Melania sensed trouble and broke up with him for six months. “She had some trust issues with him at the beginning,” a friend told GQ.
Melania Trump admits that Donald Trump “is not politically correct”
During her husband’s presidency, Melania Trump has tried to stay out of most political conversations, though she’s assured America that she’s very well informed and active behind closed doors. “I’m very political in private life, and between me and my husband I know everything that is going on,” she told Harper’s Bazaar. Additionally, Donald Trump takes his wife’s advice to heart. In an interview with Barbara Walters on ABC News, he confessed, “She said ‘you could tone it down a little bit on occasion,’ which I understand.”
Melania has also admitted that the president does not play by societal rules. “He is not politically correct, and he tells the truth,” she revealed. And in her speech at the Republican National Convention, Melania reiterated that fact. “As you have learned over the past five years, he is not a traditional politician,” she explained.
In fact, Melania may be Donald’s number one fan, as she predicted his presidential win years before he ran. As far back as 1999, Melania said her husband would undoubtedly be president one day (via The Washington Times). She was right.