Queen Elizabeth's Private Assessment of Donald Trump Unveiled in New Biography
Startling revelations about Queen Elizabeth II's private views on Donald Trump have emerged from a 2024 biography that documents her meetings with world leaders and her candid personal assessments of them.
The Two-Word Verdict
In A Voyage Around the Queen, author Craig Brown reports that the late monarch confided to a lunch guest "a few weeks after" one of Trump's UK visits that she found the former US president "very rude." This blunt characterisation forms the centrepiece of the biography's disclosures about her private thoughts regarding the controversial American leader.
Brown further alleges that Queen Elizabeth "particularly disliked the way he couldn't stop looking over her shoulder, as though in search of others more interesting." This observation suggests she found his attention wandering during their interactions, which she interpreted as discourteous behaviour toward her position.
Questions About Personal Life
The biography makes additional claims about the Queen's private musings regarding Trump's personal circumstances. According to Brown's account, she reportedly commented on Trump's marriage to Melania, stating she believed the US president "must have some sort of arrangement" with his wife.
She apparently followed this observation by questioning how, otherwise, Melania would have "remained married to him." These private speculations about the Trump marriage dynamic add another layer to the revelations about her personal assessments of world figures.
Context of Controversial Meetings
Brown places these Trump observations within the broader context of Queen Elizabeth's extensive experience with contentious foreign leaders throughout her unprecedented seventy-year reign. "Over the course of her reign, Her Majesty entertained many controversial foreign leaders, including Bashar al-Assad, Robert Mugabe, Idi Amin, Donald Trump, Emperor Hirohito and Vladimir Putin," he notes in the biography.
The author adds: "She may not have found their company convivial; upon their departure, she may even have voiced a discreet word of disapproval." This suggests that while the Queen maintained diplomatic decorum publicly, she occasionally shared candid private assessments with trusted confidants.
The 2018 Working Visit
Queen Elizabeth first met Donald Trump in 2018, just one year following his inauguration as the 45th president of the United States. Although not an official state visit, this "working visit" was marked by significant public demonstrations across London, including the now-famous giant "baby blimp" portraying Trump that flew over Parliament.
Protocol issues reportedly marred aspects of the visit. The head of state was understood to have arrived behind schedule, leaving the then-92-year-old Queen waiting "in warm conditions." Observers also highlighted that during the inspection of the Guard of Honour, the president repeatedly walked ahead of the monarch before suddenly halting, forcing her to adjust her pace to walk alongside him.
Contrasting Public Statements
Following the 2018 visit, Trump presented a markedly different public account of the meeting. He told Fox News: "There are those that say they have never seen the Queen have a better time, a more animated time." This optimistic characterisation stands in stark contrast to the private assessment attributed to the Queen in Brown's biography.
The two nations conducted a full state visit the following year in 2019, which was generally received more favourably by the British public. However, even this occasion included a momentary incident where Trump allegedly placed his hand on the Queen's back while praising her as a "great, great woman" during a toast - a gesture that reportedly breached royal protocol regarding physical contact with the monarch.
Trump subsequently told Fox News about this encounter: "We were laughing and having fun. And her people said she hasn't had so much fun in 25 years." Again, this cheerful public narrative contrasts with the private characterisation revealed in the biography.
Official Responses and Continuing Relations
Buckingham Palace has not responded to the specific allegations in Brown's book. Palace sources have previously characterised Trump as a "model" guest who was courteous and charming to staff during his visits. This official line maintains the diplomatic decorum expected of royal communications regarding visiting heads of state.
Trump himself has regularly voiced reverence for the late Queen. After her passing in 2022, he said: "Melania and I are deeply saddened to learn of the loss of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. What a grand and beautiful lady she was – there was nobody like her!"
Now, with King Charles III at the helm, relations between Trump and the Royal Family appear to have remained cordial. During a US state visit in September 2025, the King commended Trump's dedication to "finding solutions to some of the world's most intractable conflicts," while Trump remarked that "special does not begin to do it justice" when characterising the US-UK relationship.
The biography's revelations provide a rare glimpse behind the curtain of royal diplomacy, showing how even the most discreet public figures form private opinions about the world leaders they encounter. While maintaining impeccable public decorum throughout her reign, Queen Elizabeth apparently harboured candid personal views that occasionally surfaced in private conversations with trusted individuals.
