Eva Schloss, the esteemed Auschwitz survivor who became Anne Frank’s step-sister and dedicated her life to Holocaust education, has passed away at age 96. Her foundation confirmed her peaceful death in London on January 3rd.
Born Eva Geiringer in Austria in 1929, Schloss experienced the Nazi annexation of her homeland as a child. Her Jewish family fled successively to Belgium and eventually Amsterdam, where they settled opposite the Frank family residence. She and Anne Frank, being the same age, frequently played together during their childhood.
In 1942, both families were forced into hiding to escape Nazi persecution. Tragically, Schloss’s family was betrayed by a Nazi sympathizer two years later. On her fifteenth birthday, she was arrested alongside her mother Elfriede, father Erich, and brother Heinz. They were transported to the Auschwitz extermination camp in May 1944.
While imprisoned, Schloss maintained contact with her mother but was permanently separated from her father and brother, both of whom perished in the camps. Anne Frank similarly died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945.
Following Auschwitz’s liberation by Soviet forces in 1945, Schloss and her mother returned to the Netherlands. There they encountered Otto Frank, Anne’s father and a widower after his own Auschwitz imprisonment. Otto encouraged Schloss to pursue photography, leading her to study in London where she met future husband Zvi Schloss.
In a significant familial development, Eva’s mother Elfriede married Otto Frank in 1953, formally making Eva Anne Frank’s step-sister. Eva and Zvi obtained British citizenship and raised three daughters together. Remarkably, Schloss reclaimed her Austrian citizenship in 2021 at age 92.
Schloss co-founded the Anne Frank Trust UK in 1990, through which she tirelessly combated prejudice and educated generations about Holocaust atrocities. Her extraordinary commitment earned her Membership of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 2013.
British royalty expressed profound condolences, with King Charles III and Queen Camilla noting they were “greatly saddened” and describing themselves as “privileged and proud to have known her.” Gillian Walnes, vice president of the Anne Frank Trust UK, highlighted Schloss’s relentless advocacy: “Into her 90s, she spoke with tireless passion, often giving several talks a day, including in prisons and schools.”
Schloss authored several books and shared her testimony worldwide, ensuring the lessons of history remain vividly alive for future generations.