Holocaust Survivor Eva Schloss Dies at Age 96 as The Monarch Leads Tributes
The King has led tributes to the step-sister of Anne Frank and Holocaust survivor Eva Schloss, who has died at the age of 96.
"We both are greatly saddened to hear of the passing of Eva Schloss," wrote the King in a tribute shared via social media.
He added, "The atrocities that she endured as a young woman are impossible to comprehend and yet she dedicated the remainder of her life to fighting hatred and prejudice, fostering kindness, courage, understanding and resilience."
An Existence Committed to Awareness
Mrs Schloss was the founding member and honorary president of the Anne Frank educational trust, an organization where Queen Camilla serves as Patron.
In the 1940s, 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 infamous Auschwitz death camp.
The Anne Frank Trust said Mrs Schloss died in London on 3 January. "As a girl, Eva Schloss-Geiringer resided in Amsterdam, opposite Anne Frank's home," the trust noted.
Survival and Loss
When Mrs Schloss and her mother were freed by the Soviet army in January 1945, they were barely alive. Her brother and father both died in captivity.
After being returned to Amsterdam, her mother Elfriede—called Fritzi—wed Otto Frank, the father of Anne Frank, who had also managed to survive internment 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 educated people about the Holocaust.
- Frank's widely-read diary—a personal testimony of life for Jewish people under Nazi occupation—has sold more than 30 million copies.
- Mrs Schloss often travelled across Europe, speaking to young people in particular and spreading a message of tolerance.
"I worked very, very hard to alter people's attitudes," Mrs Schloss once said. "Every individual you convince not to be racist is a step forward."
Later Life
In 1951, Mrs Schloss relocated 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 UK citizens. Mr Schloss died in London in 2016. They are remembered by their daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren.
