Anne Frank Facts: Remembering ‘The Diary of a Young Girl’ Author and Holocaust Victim on Her 91st Birth Anniversary

Annelies Marie Frank known world over as Anne Frank was a German-Dutch diarist who rose to fame posthumously for her painful narration of the Jewish Holocaust which claimed her life. Her book titled ‘The Diary of Young Girl’ depicts the horrors of the Jewish population during the World War II and her life in hiding between 1942 and 1944. Born on June 12, 1929, in Frankfurt, Germany during the time of peak Hitler popularity, her life was characterised by severe financial strain due to the anti-Semitic policies of the government. Anne Frank, despite the troubles, was a girl of immense will power and full of life. She wrote short stories during her time in time in a hiding place in the Netherlands along with her diary, which proved to be awe-inspiring.

On her birth anniversary, we take a look at some facts about Anne Frank’s life.

1. 1. Anne Frank had a sister Margot who was three years her senior. Due to extreme poverty, her father Otto Frank moved to the Netherlands to set up a business of selling pectin.

1. 1. When Anne Frank was ten years old, the Germans invaded the Netherlands with the Dutch army surrendering meekly. The Franks moved into hiding when the Germans wanted to Margot Frank back to their country.

1. 1. Her hiding place was called ‘The Secret Annex’ and was prepared by her father, who built it in the backhouse of his company at Prinsengracht 263.Otto Frank took the help of four of his employees – Miep Gies, Bep Voskuijl, Johannes Kleiman and Victor Krugler- called ‘The Helpers’. They would bring the family food and clothes.

1. 1. A diary was gifted to Anne Frank on her 13th birthday as she had always loved writing. During her time at ‘The Secret Annex’, she used two notebooks and 360 pages of loose-leaf paper when her diary got full.

1. 1. Anne Frank’s writing style was a letter to a person named ‘Kitty’. In addition to Kitty, there were also letters to Conny, Marianne, Emmy and Pop.

1. 1. German officer Karl Silberbauer arrested Anne Frank and her family on August 4, 1944, after someone gave away their whereabouts. The arresting officer was suspended for his action in 1963 but later reinstated.

1. 1. Anne Frank died in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after losing both her mother and elder sister to starvation and Typhus respectively.

1. 1. Her father Otto Frank was the only survivor from Auschwitz and went on to publish her diary in 1947.

1. 1. There have been attempts by Holocaust deniers to portray Anne Frank’s diary as fake but without much success.

Anne Frank’s ‘The Diary of a Young Girl’ has sold a staggering 30 million copies and translated into 67 languages. She may have died young, but her flawless work has made Anne Frank immortal.