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Date of Birth
June 12, 1929, Anne Frank was born to her parents Otto Frank and Edith Frank. She had one sibling, her older sister Margot Frank. She is German, and spoke Dutch. The Franks were liberal Jews. -
The Nazi Party Comes Into Power
On March 13, 1933, Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party was voted into power. In the same year Anne, her sister, and her mother went to Aachen, where they stayed with Anne's grandmother. Their father, Otto Frank, stayed in Frankfurt. Soon Otto Frank recieved an offer to move to Amsterdam for work. He took the offer and made arrangments for his family to move there with him.
The Franks were among 300,000 Jews who fled Germany between 1933 and 1939. -
Life In Amsterdam
By February 1934, Anne, her sister, and her mother, had come to join Otto Frank in Amsterdam. The sisters were soon enrolled in school - Margot in public school and Anne in a Montessori school. -
Anne's Grandmother Lives With the Family
In 1939, Anne's gradmother went to live with the Franks. She stayed with them until she passed away in January of 1942. -
Germany Invades the Netherlands
May 1940, Germany invaded the Netherlands. The government had now begun to persecute the Jews through laws meant to restrict and discriminate. Eventually Jewish people were required to be registered and were also segregated. -
Anne's Father Attemps to Flee With his Family
As of 1941, Otto could not flee with his family to the United States as he had hoped. The Us government at the time was concerned that people who immigrated could be Nazi spies. -
The Diary
For her thirteenth birthday, Anne Frank recieved her famous diary. Almost immediately, she began to write in it. -
Early Entries
In one of her early entries, Anne describes the restrictions that the Jews had had placed upon them. She also talks about her sadness over her grandmother's passing, which occured earlier that year. She also dreamt of becoming an actress, as she loved watching movies and going to movie theaters. -
Into Hiding
In the month of July in 1942, the Franks recieved a phone call ordering them to relocate into a work camp. This alerted them to the fact that they had to go into hiding earlier than expected. Otto Frank had his family go into hiding in rooms above and behind Opekta's premises. Some of his most trusted employees would help them there. -
First Day in Hiding
On the early morning of July 6th, 1942, Anne Franks and the rest of her family went into hiding in a secret annex. Their old apartment was left in a state of disary and Anne's father had left a note saying that they had left for Switzerland. They fled on foot to their new "home" in layers of clothing, as they dared not be seen with luggage. -
The Franks are Joined by the van Pels Family
Hermann, Auguste, and Peter van Pel joined the franks in the small attic hiding space. In November, Fritz Pfeffer, a dentist and a friend of the family also accompanied the Franks and the van Pels. Anne wrote in her diary about how she was excited to have new people to talk to, but soon tensions were running high because of the conditions they were forced to live under. -
The Aspiring Journalist
A diary entry written by Anne on April 5th 1944 spoke of how she wished to become a journalist. She wanted to do something other than become a mother and wife, and instead have something else to devote herself to.
"I want to be useful or bring enjoyment to all people, even those I've never met. I want to go on living after my death!"
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Frank) -
The Last Entry
Anne Frank's very final diary entry was dated at August 1st, 1944. -
The Arrest
The Franks, van Pels and Pfeffer were discovered and taken RSHA headquaters, where they were interrogated and held over night. -
In The End
The exact date of Anne Frank's death is unknown. Some speculate that she died just a few weeks before British soldiers liberated the camp on April 15th, 1945. However, new research shows that she may have died as early as February. Even through harsh conditions however, survivors recall her having strength and courage. Her father, Otto Frank, was the only survivor.
