REMEMBRANCE: ROYALS MARK HOLOCAUST ANNIVERSARY
Duchess joins 200 former Auschwitz prisoners at event to mark anniversary of liberation
SOLEMN DUTY: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended the UK Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony at Central Hall Westminster, London. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp.
THE EMOTION etched on their faces showed that memories of one of the darkest periods in history persist to this day.
More than 200 survivors of the Holocaust returned to Auschwitz yesterday, to remember the millions of lives which were lost during the systematic extermination of Jews by the Nazis – and to ensure that the world will never forget.
Yesterday’s commemorations on the annual Holocaust Memorial Day took on an added significance as it marked 75 years since the liberation of the Nazi death camp by Soviet troops.
The survivors were joined by dignitaries including the Duchess of Cornwall for commemorations at the former camp in occupied Poland.
Camilla was alongside other leading figures from across the world for the service, which was held in a tent erected around the camp’s gate house, referred to as the Gate Of Death by prisoners.
Following the ceremony, those attending walked 765 yards alongside the railway lines which brought prisoners to Auschwitz. At the end of the walk, candles were placed at the main monument to pay tribute to victims of the Holocaust.
Among the survivors was Renee Salt, 90, who travelled from her home in London to return to the camp where she was taken aged 15.
Mrs Salt, who returns to the camp regularly to tell visitors her story, said: “The first few times I went it felt terrible, I was shaking all the time, I was so nervous. But you get used to anything.”
She saw her father for the last time after arriving at the camp in 1944.
She said: “He jumped off the train, I jumped after him and by the time I got off he had disappeared like into thin air. I never saw him again. He went without a kiss, without a goodbye, he just disappeared.”
Also there to mark the anniversary was Hannah Lewis, who was born in Poland in 1937 and forced to march to a labour camp in 1943. Her mother was shot by German police in the camp, where Mrs Lewis, 82, stayed until she was liberated by a Soviet soldier. She later moved to London to live with her great aunt and uncle.
Mrs Salt and Mrs Lewis, who both work with the Holocaust Education Trust, joined the UK delegation at Auschwitz
yesterday, which was led by the Duchess and also included Lord Eric Pickles, the UK PostHolocaust Envoy, as well as Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and representatives of the Jewish community in the UK. More than 40 national delegations from across the world attended.
In London, commemorations saw the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend a service at Central Hall in Westminster.
William’s great-grandmother, Princess Alice, saved a Jewish family, the Cohens, in 1943. Her bravery was recognised by Israel, which in 1993 posthumously
bestowed the title of Righteous Among the Nations on her.
At the service, the Duke read from a letter written by a friend of the Princess, which said: “The Princess put a small two-room apartment on the third floor at the disposal of Mrs Cohen and her daughter. It was thanks to the courageous rescue of Princess Alice that the members of the Cohen family were saved.”
The service was also attended by actors including EastEnders’ Nina Wadia, Judge John Deed’s Martin Shaw and stage star Sir Simon Russell Beale, all of whom gave readings.
The first few times I went it felt terrible, I was shaking all the time. Holocaust survivor Renee Salt.