Did you know that Donald Trump has a coat of arms? On Reddit’s r/heraldry, an image of Donald Trump’s challenge coin recently surfaced. Firstly, what is a challenge coin? Traditionally, challenge coins have been used to prove membership, boost morale, and recognize special achievements. Historically, they were presented by commanders for notable accomplishments or exchanged during visits to an organization. As Commander in Chief, the President of the United States participates in this somewhat unique custom—exchanging a special challenge coin to a soldier through a “secret handshake”, a moment captured in the featured image below.
Joseph Edward Davies’ coat of arms
Anyhow, Trump’s challenge coin features the seal of the president of the United States on one side, and Trump’s appropriated – or usurped – coat of arms on the other side. But why appropriated? As the BBC has previously reported on in an article aptly named “Right to bear arms?”, the Trump coat of arms closely mirrors one originally granted by the College of Arms in London to Joseph Edward Davies in 1939. Davies was an American diplomat of Welsh decent and third husband to socialite Marjorie Merriweather Post—who built the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida now owned by Trump.
It was presumably after his purchase of Mar-a-Lago in the 80’s where Trump first saw the coat of arms. Trump has since appropriated it as his personal emblem and for use by the Trump Organisation. While the original featured the motto “Integritas”, the Trump coat of arms simply displays the name “Trump”. Lost integrity? Unfortunately, it is strikingly on brand.
The apparent arms theft was noticed by Davies’ grandson, former U.S. Senator for Maryland, Joseph Tydings, during a visit to the Mar-a-Lago estate. Tydings told the press at the time that Davies had not given the Trump Organization permission to use the coat of arms. However, due to the U.S.’s less stringent heraldry laws, no legal action was taken. Tydings has since spoken out, remarking that his grandfather “would be turning in his grave”.
Problems in Europe
However, Trump’s blatant “borrowing” did actually caught the attention of the Lord Lyon King of Arms when he later attempted to use it to brand a new golf course in Scotland. Scottish officials observed that Trump had not registered the arms with the Court of the Lord Lyon, the public body responsible for all matters relating to Scottish heraldry.
Additionally, an application sent to the College of Arms, the authority for the rest of the United Kingdom, was also rejected after the college pointed out that the design had been copied from an existing coat of arms. The motto – changed from “Integritas” to “Trump” – does not technically form part of the arms, making the two identical in the eyes of the authorities. The change in the colors was also deemed insufficient. Ultimately, the Trump Organization modified the design it had taken from Davies and was granted the arms below by the Lord Lyon.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., Trump simply trademarked the original Davies family design and prominently displays it across golf resorts, various merchandise, bits and pieces – now including his challenge coin.
Many U.S. presidents have had personal coats of arms, often through inheritance, assumption, or grants from heraldic authorities of foreign countries. For example, Eisenhower received his coat of arms in Denmark after being made a Knight of the Order of the Elephant. A full list can be found here.