Donald Trump's father 'repeatedly tried to hide his family's German heritage'
The President's father, Fred Trump, said the family was from Sweden
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s family has repeatedly attempted to hide their German heritage, it has been reported.
The President’s father, Fred Trump, passed himself off as Swedish, amid anti-German sentiment after World War II, according to Gwenda Blair’s book, The Trumps: Three Generations that Built an Empire.
The book claims that Donald’s grandfather immigrated to the US from the German city of Kallstadt in 1885.
It also suggests that that Fred denied speaking German and opted not to teach it to his children.
John Walter, a Trump family historian and one of Donald Trump’s cousins, said it was an attempt not to offend Jewish customers.
“He said, ‘You don’t sell apartments after the war if you’re German,’ “ Mr Walter told the Boston Globe. “So he’s Swedish, no problem.”
In his book, “The Art of the Deal,” Donald Trump reaffirmed the claim that his grandfather came to America “from Sweden as a child” but in a video message at the annual German-American Steuben Parade in New York City the President accepted he has a German heritage.
“We passed Trump Tower, 69 stories. I looked up and I said, ‘This is a long way from Kallstadt’, I’m a proud German-American,” Mr Trump added in the 1999 address.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments