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

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

He continued, "The atrocities that she endured as a teenager are impossible to fathom and yet she dedicated the remainder of her life to overcoming hatred and prejudice, promoting kindness, courage, understanding and resilience."

An Existence Dedicated to Education

Mrs Schloss was the founding member and honorary head of the Anne Frank educational trust, an organization where Queen Camilla serves as 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 death camp.

The Anne Frank Trust said Mrs Schloss died in London on 3 January. "As a girl, Eva Schloss-Geiringer lived in Amsterdam, near Anne Frank's home," the trust noted.

Survival and Loss

By the time Mrs Schloss and her mother were freed by the Red Army in January 1945, they were clinging to life. Her brother and father both perished in captivity.

After being repatriated to Amsterdam, her mother Elfriede—known as Fritzi—married 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 preserved Anne Frank's memory and educated people about the Holocaust.
• Frank's internationally famous diary—a first-hand account 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 promoting a message of tolerance.

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

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 British citizens. Mr Schloss passed away in London in 2016. They are survived by their daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren.