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

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

He added, "The horrors that she experienced as a teenager are difficult to fathom and yet she devoted the remainder of her life to fighting hatred and prejudice, promoting kindness, courage, understanding and resilience."

An Existence Committed to Education

Mrs Schloss was the founding member and honorary head of the Anne Frank 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 deported to the infamous 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.

Survival and Tragedy

By the time 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 the camps.

After being returned to Amsterdam, her mother Elfriede—known as Fritzi—married Otto Frank, the father of Anne Frank, who had also survived imprisonment by the Nazis.

An Enduring Impact

Over the past 40 years, Mrs Schloss dedicated her life 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 widely-read diary—a personal testimony of life for Jewish people under Nazi occupation—has sold more than 30 million copies.
• Mrs Schloss often journeyed across Europe, addressing young people 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 positive."

Later Life

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.