Auschwitz Survivor Eva Schloss Passes Away at 96 Years Old as The Monarch Leads Tributes

The King has offered condolences to Anne Frank's step-sister and survivor of the Holocaust Eva Schloss, who passed away at the age of 96.

He added, "The horrors that she endured as a teenager are impossible to comprehend and yet she dedicated the remainder of her life to overcoming hatred and prejudice, fostering kindness, courage, understanding and resilience."

An Existence Committed to Awareness

Mrs Schloss was the co-founder and honorary president of the Anne Frank Trust, an organization where the Queen Consort serves as Royal Patron.

In the Second World War era, Mrs Schloss and her family were forced from their home in Austria. They lived as refugees in the Netherlands before being apprehended and deported to the notorious Auschwitz concentration camp.

The Anne Frank Trust announced Mrs Schloss passed away in London on 3 January. "In her youth, Eva Schloss-Geiringer lived in Amsterdam, near Anne Frank's home," the trust stated.

Survival and Tragedy

When Mrs Schloss and her mother were freed by the Soviet army in January 1945, they were clinging to life. Her father and brother both perished in captivity.

After being repatriated to Amsterdam, her mother Elfriede—known as Fritzi—wed Otto Frank, the father of Anne Frank, who had also managed to survive imprisonment by the Nazis.

A Lasting Impact

Over the past four decades, Mrs Schloss devoted her efforts to trying to stop history from repeating itself.

• As a founder of the Anne Frank Trust UK, she preserved Anne Frank's memory and informed people about the Holocaust.
• Frank's internationally famous diary—a personal testimony of life for Jewish people under Nazi occupation—has sold over 30 million copies.
• Mrs Schloss often travelled across Europe, addressing the youth in particular and spreading a message of tolerance.

"I worked very, very hard to change people's attitudes," Mrs Schloss remarked in an interview. "Every individual you convince not to be racist is a positive."

Subsequent Years

In 1951, Mrs Schloss moved to London to learn photography. There she met her husband, Zvi Schloss, a German Jew who had escaped to Palestine during the war.

The couple settled in London and became British citizens. Mr Schloss died in London in 2016. They are survived by their daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren.