Auschwitz Camp Survivor Eva Schloss Passes Away at Age 96 as The Monarch Leads Respects
King Charles has offered condolences to Anne Frank's step-sister and Holocaust survivor Eva Schloss, who has died at the age of 96.
"We both are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Eva Schloss," stated the King in a tribute shared via social media.
He continued, "The horrors that she endured as a teenager 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 Dedicated to Awareness
Mrs Schloss was the founding member and honorary head of the Anne Frank educational trust, an organization where the Queen Consort serves as Royal Patron.
In the 1940s, Mrs Schloss and her family were chased from their home in Austria. They existed as displaced persons in the Netherlands before being captured and sent to the notorious Auschwitz death camp.
The Anne Frank Trust said 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 noted.
Endurance and Loss
When Mrs Schloss and her mother were freed by the Red Army in January 1945, they were barely alive. Her father and brother both perished in the camps.
After being returned to Amsterdam, her mother Elfriede—called Fritzi—wed Otto Frank, the father of Anne Frank, who had also managed to survive imprisonment by the Nazis.
A Lasting Legacy
Over the past four decades, Mrs Schloss devoted her efforts to trying to stop history from happening again.
- As co-founder of the Anne Frank Trust UK, she safeguarded Anne Frank's memory and educated people about the Holocaust.
- Frank's widely-read diary—a first-hand account of life for Jewish people under Nazi occupation—has sold more than 30 million copies.
- Mrs Schloss often journeyed across Europe, speaking to the youth in particular and spreading a message of tolerance.
"I have worked very, very hard to alter people's attitudes," Mrs Schloss once said. "Each person you persuade not to be racist is a step forward."
Subsequent Years
In 1951, Mrs Schloss relocated to London to learn photography. There she met her husband, Zvi Schloss, a German Jew who had fled to Palestine during the war.
The couple settled in London and became UK citizens. Mr Schloss passed away in London in 2016. They are survived by their daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren.
