Holocaust Survivor Eva Schloss Passes Away at 96 Years Old as King Charles Leads Tributes

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

He continued, "The horrors that she endured as a young woman 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 Awareness

Mrs Schloss was the co-founder and honorary president of the Anne Frank Trust, an organization where Queen Camilla serves as Royal Patron.

In the Second World War era, Mrs Schloss and her family were forced from their home in Austria. They existed as displaced persons in the Netherlands before being captured and sent to the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp.

The Anne Frank Trust announced Mrs Schloss died in London on 3 January. "In her youth, Eva Schloss-Geiringer lived in Amsterdam, opposite Anne Frank's home," the trust noted.

Endurance and Tragedy

When Mrs Schloss and her mother were liberated by the Red Army in January 1945, they were barely alive. Her brother and father both perished in the camps.

After being repatriated to Amsterdam, her mother Elfriede—known as Fritzi—married Otto Frank, the father of Anne Frank, who had also managed to survive internment by the Nazis.

A Lasting Legacy

Over the past four decades, Mrs Schloss devoted her efforts to trying to prevent 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 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 the youth in particular and spreading a message of tolerance.

"I worked very, very hard to change people's attitudes," Mrs Schloss once said. "Every individual you persuade not to be racist is a positive."

Subsequent Years

In 1951, Mrs Schloss moved 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 died in London in 2016. They are remembered by their daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren.