Holocaust Survivor Eva Schloss Dies at 96 Years Old as King Charles Pays Tributes

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

He added, "The atrocities that she experienced as a young woman are difficult to comprehend and yet she devoted the rest of her life to fighting hatred and prejudice, promoting kindness, courage, understanding and resilience."

An Existence Dedicated to Education

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 sent to the notorious Auschwitz concentration camp.

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

Survival and Tragedy

By the time Mrs Schloss and her mother were freed by the Soviet army in January 1945, they were clinging to life. Her brother and father 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 survived 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 a founder of the Anne Frank Trust UK, she safeguarded 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 more than 30 million copies.
• Mrs Schloss often travelled across Europe, addressing the youth in particular and spreading a message not to hate.

"I worked very, very hard to alter people's attitudes," Mrs Schloss remarked in an interview. "Each person you persuade not to be racist is a step forward."

Later Life

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.