Washington: Ivanka Trump has reportedly been dubbed "the Princess Royal" by her enemies within the White House.

Unnamed figures have revealed frustrations with the president's daughter and her husband, Jared Kushner, and accuse them of "thinking they're special".

The knives came out for the power couple in a cutting profile published by Vanity Fair, the American culture and society magazine, which canvassed administration insiders and friends of the Kushners.

One former Trump adviser told the magazine: "Excuse me, this is not a royal family, and she's not the Princess Royal."

Another insider added: "What is off-putting about them is they do not grasp their essential irrelevance. They think they are special."

Ms Trump and Mr Kushner, who are both senior advisers to the president, were accused by enemies of lacking "self-awareness" in dealings with politicians.

The Washington elite was said to have successfully "repelled" them as they tried to make an impact.

A friend also told Vanity Fair life in the political maelstrom "punctures their self-esteem on a daily basis".

The extraordinary picture of a power couple unhappy and under vicious attack followed a widespread backlash from many who had seen them as a potential restraining influence on Mr Trump.

Friends of Ms Trump said she had felt hurt by criticism of her inability to dissuade her father from taking action, such as pulling the US out of the Paris climate accord.

Mr Kushner, who advises his father-in-law on issues including the Middle East, was criticised by unnamed sources for a perceived lack of experience.

Within the White House some other advisers were said to have been piqued when Ms Trump was assigned to temporarily take her father's seat next to Theresa May at the G20 summit in Hamburg in July.

She also sat in on a meeting between her father and Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister, during the transition period before he took up residence in the White House.

Mr Trump himself has previously sought to insulate his daughter from attacks, saying: "If she weren't my daughter it would be so much easier for her. It might be the only bad thing she has going, if you want to know the truth."

Friends of the couple told Vanity Fair they feel their time in Washington so far has been "sacrificial".

Rumours have been rife that, amid an apparent inability to influence Mr Trump on major issues, they may ultimately leave the administration.

Mr Trump was said to be "emotionally dependent" on them but less so in formulating policy.

One strategist suggested to the magazine that the couple, who have three children, may leave Washington at the end of the 2018 school year.

The couple own a $US5.5 million home in the capital's Kalorama neighbourhood, around the corner from Barack and Michelle Obama, after moving from New York to take up the senior government roles.

A Republican donor close to the couple said: "When they decide it's more important to protect their own and their children's reputations than it is to defend (Mr Trump's), that's a sign the end is near."

Ms Trump has previously indicated she was shocked by the viciousness in Washington. In June she said: "It is hard and there is a level of viciousness that I was not expecting."

The couple previously had constant access to the president but are now subject to a system imposed by John Kelly, the new chief of staff.

Mr Kushner has found himself thrust into the spotlight after it emerged he attended a meeting with a Russian lawyer, alongside Donald Trump Jr, during the election campaign.

Telegraph, UK