Today I want to find out a bit about how Anne Franks life changed after the German invasion of the Netherlands in May 1940. It did not happen overnight. Life became more difficult month by month as new rules were introduced. For Anne and thousands of other Jewish children, their freedom slowly disappeared.
At first, many Dutch people hoped the occupation wouldn’t last very long, but sadly they were wrong. Over the next two years, the German authorities introduced one restriction after another. Jewish families were gradually separated from the rest of society.
Anne was jot allowed to go to her local school and had to move to the Jewish Lyceum in Amsterdam. This was where all Jewish children were forced to study, she was separated from many of her non-Jewish friends. But throughout she still tried to stay cheerful and make new friendships. Like many children, Anne did her best to carry on with school and everyday life as normally as possible, even though everything was changing.
The list of things Jewish people were not allowed to do seemed to grow almost every month. They had to wear a yellow Star of David on their clothing so they could be identified as Jewish in public. They were banned from cinemas, theatres, parks, swimming pools, sports clubs and many cafés. They could not use most public transport, had to shop during certain limited hours, and were even forbidden from riding bikes. Everyday freedoms that most people hardly even think about were slowly being taken away.
Anne's family tried to make the best of things. They still celebrated birthdays and spent time together. Otto and Edith were trying to keep things as normal as possible for their children. Otto did everything he could to protect his wife and daughters.
The restrictions also affected Otto's business. Jewish-owned businesses came under pressure, so he transferred the ownership of his company to trusted non-Jewish colleagues in an effort to protect it. He continued behind the scenes to help manage the business while quietly preparing for an uncertain future.
Otto Frank had begun secretly preparing for the possibility that his family might have to disappear. Using the building where his business operated on Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, he arranged a hidden set of rooms at the back of the premises that could be used as a hiding place if the situation became too dangerous. Only a small number of trusted employees knew about the plan, including Miep Gies, Johannes Kleiman, Victor Kugler and Bep Voskuijl. They understood the enormous risk they were taking, but each one of them agreed to help the Frank family if the time came.
Anne knew very little about what was happening. To protect Anne and her sister Margot, their parents kept the plans largely to themselves. Over several weeks, Otto, Edith and their helpers secretly moved clothes, bedding, books, food and other essential belongings from the family home to the hiding place, carrying only small amounts each time. They had to make sure not to attract attention. To everyone else, the Frank family appeared to be living an ordinary life, but behind the scenes they were preparing for the day they might have to disappear without warning.
But the danger was becoming impossible to ignore. Jewish neighbours began to disappear without warning. Friends stopped coming to school. Families who had lived nearby were suddenly gone. Rumours started to spread about arrests and people being taken away, although few people understood where they were being sent or what lay ahead.
Anne was only teenager, but she could see and feel the fear that was increasing around her. Each new rule took away another freedom and every month brought more uncertainty. The Frank family still hoped that things would improve, but I think deep down they knew that they needed to prepare for something much worse.
On the 5th of July 1942, Anne's older sister Margot received a notice ordering her to report for a so-called labour camp in Germany. The family knew this was far too dangerous to ignore. The very next day, they left their home behind and disappeared into hiding.
Tomorrow we'll follow Anne and her family as they begin their new life in hiding.
If you had lived through these gradual restrictions, at what point do you think you would have realised that ordinary life was never coming back?
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