By her own admission, Ivanka Trump had a highly privileged childhood as the daughter of billionaire businessman-turned-presidential candidate Donald Trump and his first wife Ivana. But it was not without its difficulties.
When Ivanka was just a little girl, her parents' marriage fell apart – and the family soon found themselves facing a huge media scandal when it was revealed that Donald had had an affair with Marla Marples, who later became his second wife.
© Photo: Getty ImagesIvanka Trump with her father Donald in 1995
Ivanka says her parents worked tirelessly to shelter her and her brothers, Donald Jr and Eric, from the fallout. "They did a remarkable job protecting us from something largely out of their control," the 34-year-old exclusively told People.
"We didn't have newspapers in the house for a significant period of time, and the TV wasn't on when they weren't there. So they tried to mitigate the attention that that moment received."
© Photo: Getty ImagesIvanka, 14, pictured with her mother Ivana Trump
And while the costly divorce proceedings dragged on, with both Donald and Ivana publicly making disparaging remarks about one another to the press, they made every effort to remain on civil terms at home.
"Really the way in which they helped us the most was by being supportive with one another, not disparaging the other in front of us, recognising that and communicating that there was still tremendous affection between them and that there would always be great love for us," Ivanka, now a mum of three, added.
© Photo: Getty ImagesDonald and Ivana's divorce was settled in 1992
"And I think in retrospect, I became closer to both of my parents because I was at that stage in life where you do take your parents for granted and something like that happens and maybe you stop taking them for granted as much.
"They made a real effort to ensure that we knew that they would always be there for us and accessible to us, and it helped us through a difficult time," she said.
