Anne Frank is one of the most important figures of the 20th century. Her book, The Diary of a Young Girl, documented life for a Jewish family hiding in Amsterdam during the Second World War.
Her story was a tragic one but her diary is seen as a symbol of defiance against a cruel and totalitarian political regime and has gone on to inspire millions of people all around the world.
The following are 10 interesting facts about Anne Frank’s life.
Interesting Facts about Anne Frank
1. Anne Frank was born in 1929
Anne Frank was born Annelies Marie Frank on June 12, 1929, in Frankfurt, Germany. Her parents were Otto and Edith Frank and she had an older sister by four years, Margot Frank.
The Franks were a family of liberal jews. They lived in a community of Jewish and non-Jewish people. Her mother, Edith, was more dedicated to their religion than their father, who was a businessman and spent a lot of his focusing on improving his skills.
2. Anne Frank moved to Amsterdam in 1934
Anne was born into uncertain times in Germany and following the election of Adolf Hitler in 1933, Otto Frank moved to Amsterdam to focus on his business there. Otto worked for a company called Opekta, which was a pectin and spice company. Not a well known fact about Anne Frank is that just one year later in February 1934, Edith, Margot, and Anne would join Otto in Amsterdam.
Anne would join a Montessori school during her time in Amsterdam and showed a particular talent for reading and writing. Her sister, on the other hand, was particularly skilled at math and arithmetic.
3. Anne Frank received her diary on her 13th birthday
Anne Frank received her diary on the 12th of June 1942, which was her 13th birthday, which is a very important fact about Anne Frank. The diary was actually an autograph book she had pointed out to her father sometime earlier. It was bound together by white and red checked cloth.
She would go on to call the diary ‘kitty’ and would often start her entries in there with ‘Dear Kitty’ or ‘Dearest Kitty’.
4. Anne Frank and her family went into hiding on the 6th of July 1942
Just a few weeks after her 13th birthday, Anne Frank and her family would go into hiding in what was known as the Secret Annex.
Edith and Otto had originally planned for their family to go into hiding on July the 16th, but they had to bring that forward when Margot received a letter on July 5th calling her to a German labor camp.
The hiding place was a three-story area located via a landing in the Opekta offices on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam.
They left their home apartment in a mess in an attempt to trick the German police that they had escaped in a hurry. Otto left a note stating the family had gone to Switzerland in a further attempt to throw them off their scent. Sadly, for Anne, they had to leave their family cat in the building.
5. Anne Frank’s time in hiding
Anne and her family were supported by several non-Jewish friends during their time in the Annex. These people would bring them supplies and make sure that they were looked after.
An interesting fact about Anne Frank is that they shared the space with four more Jewish people- Hermann and Auguste van Pels and their son, Peter, and Fritz Pfeffer, who they became very close to.
During their time in hiding, none of the people had access to the outside world. There was no natural sunlight in the Annex and they were solely reliant on their friends to support and look after them.
Anne became close friends with several of the helpers and their visits would often be the highlight of her days in the Annex.
6. Anne Frank Wanted to Become a Writer
Anne Frank always showed an excellent gift when it came to writing and it was revealed through several of her diary entries that her dream was to one day become a writer.
She spoke of moving to both Paris and London to live and had ambitions to become a journalist and then later in life, a novelist.
7. Anne Frank and her family were found by the German Police in 1944
On the 4th of August 1944, the German Police, led by SS-Oberscharführer Karl Silberbauer, broke into the Annex and arrested all of the inhabitants. One day later, they were moved to Huis van Bewaring, a detention center on the Weteringschans.
An unknown fact about Anne Frank is what led to the Franks being captured but many have suspected over the years that there was some sort of informant who betrayed the family.
The group were initially moved to Westerbork, a concentration camp in the Netherlands, she was then moved to Auschwitz where her family was separated. Anne and Margot were later moved to Bergen-Belsen.
8. Anne Frank died in 1945 at age 15
After being moved from Auschwitz to Bergen-Belsen, Anne Frank died in early 1945. Her exact date and cause of death are not known, though it is believed to have been sometime in February or March and Typhus is likely to have been the course given that there was an epidemic at the time.
A sad fact about Anne Frank is that the camp was liberated not long after the death of Anne and her sister. Her father was the only member of the family to survive.
9. Anne Frank’s Diary was first published in 1947
Anne Frank’s Diary was first published in 1947 after being recovered by Miep Gies, who was her father’s friend and secretary and given to her father.
The first publication of her book was in Dutch and it was titled Het Achterhuis. It was later released in 1952 in English with the title of ‘The Diary of a Young Girl’.
10. Anne Frank’s Diary has been sold all over the world
The Diary of a Young Girl is seen as one of the most important accounts of life in the Second World War.
Since its publication, it has been translated into 70 different languages and has been released in over 60 different countries. The book has sold over 30 million copies and is often taught in schools around the world to this day.
Anne Frank’s bravery has gone on to inspire millions of people all around the world. Her diary is still read in classrooms to this day and she has countless memorials and tributes dedicated to her all around the world.
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