Anne Frank – easy to read life story
The diary written by Anne Frank is famous around the world as an eye witness account which gives an insight into the persecution faced by Jewish people under the Nazi regime.
You can download the PDF version of Anne Frank’s easy to read life story here
Key Words
Jews: People who follow the religion of Judaism.
The Nazi party: The group who were in power in Germany from 1933 – 1945, led by Adolf Hitler.
Concentration camp: Places where the Nazis kept many people as prisoners. They were put there because the Nazis did not like them. In the camps people were forced to work as slaves or they were killed. There were many camps like this in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s.
The Holocaust: The attempt by the Nazis to kill all the Jews in Europe.
Easy to read life story
Anne Frank was born in Germany in 1929. She lived with her mother Edith, her father Otto and her older sister Margot. Anne and her family were Jews.
In 1933, the Nazi Party, led by a man called Adolf Hitler, took charge of Germany. The Nazis thought that German people were better than Jewish people.
Edith and Otto were worried about their safety with the Nazis in charge, so the family moved out of Germany to Holland.
In 1939, World War Two started. The Nazi’s treatment of Jewish people got worse and worse. They were forced to leave their homes and go and live in concentration camps. Conditions in these camps were dreadful. The Frank family knew that they were very dangerous and they decided to go into hiding. Their hiding place was a secret room in Otto’s office building. The door was hidden behind a bookcase.
For her 13th birthday, Anne’s parents had given her a diary. She was so excited because she wanted to be a famous writer when she grew up.
Writing in her diary made it easier for Anne to cope with being stuck in a small space all the time. She wrote,
‘When I write I can shake off all my cares. My sorrow disappears, my spirits are revived!’
Anne and her family lived in hiding for two years. They had to be very quiet during the day so the people working in the office did not find them. Some very brave family friends risked everything to bring them food and supplies.
On 1 August 1944 Anne wrote in her diary for the last time. Three days later, the hiding place was discovered and everyone hiding was taken to a concentration camp.
The Nazis were now trying to kill all the Jewish people in Europe. This is known as the Holocaust. By the end of the war, the Nazis had killed 6 million Jews.
Anne’s mother was murdered in the concentration camp. Anne and Margot were moved to a different camp, where they both died of illness.
Otto was the only member of the family to survive the Holocaust. He came home after the war was over and was given Anne’s diary. He decided to publish it.
Anne’s diary has been read by millions of people around the world and has been translated into 70 languages.
So, Anne did become a famous writer but sadly she did not survive to see this dream come true.
For more information:
- Find out more about the Holocaust
- Find out more about The Anne Frank Trust UK