Guided Tour Marking the 100th Anniversary of Peter van Pels' Birth

Peter van Pels was born in Osnabrück on 8 November 1926. In 1937, his parents emigrated with him to Amsterdam because, as Jews, they were no longer safe in Germany. From July 1942 until his arrest in August 1944, Peter van Pels went into hiding with his parents and Anne Frank’s family in the Secret Annex at 263 Prinsengracht in Amsterdam. During this time, Peter played a special role in Anne’s life. Anne wrote a great deal about him in her diary.

After the arrest of all those in hiding in August 1944, Peter was deported to Auschwitz. When the guards cleared the camp in January 1945, he was sent on one of the ‘death marches’ to Mauthausen concentration camp, where he was forced to perform hard labour. Peter fell ill and died a few days after the liberation on 10 May 1945. Peter van Pels was 18 years old.