For my first blog, I thought I would update readers with some important information pertaining to what Margot Frank likely received by way of a “call-up” notice on July 5, 1942 (endnote 50 in “Meeting” Anne Frank (full-color edition). I also need to update you with further information on what I wrote regarding the discrepancy between the cover title of early editions of Het Achterhuis and the main title page (endnote 94 in “Meeting” Anne Frank (full-color edition).
With regard to what Margot received, the Anne Frank Stichting’s Knowledge Base in Amsterdam has helped to clarify that Margot likely was delivered a card ordering her to report to the Central Agency for Jewish Emigration in Amsterdam (German: Zentralstelle für jüdische Auswanderung):
https://research.annefrank.org/en/gebeurtenissen/dd82fa2f-943e-4be3-9d8f-5e72245f7990
It is likely that Margot would have needed to report early on July 6 in order to register herself at the Zentrastelle. At that point, it appears that Margot would have received further instructions as to where and when she would need to report on July 14/15 (the morning of the first departures from Amsterdam Centraal Station to Kamp Westerbork). She would also have been given a list of approved items that she could – deceptively expressed – take with her.
The Frank family’s haste to go into hiding on the morning of July 6 suggests that Otto and Edith would not have wanted to risk Margot going to the Zentrastelle and being detained. So basically, Margot was initially avoiding the need to register and receive further instructions for her call-up for work duty in Germany and back east. The fear was that she would have been arrested if she hadn’t shown up on time and so hiding immediately would have appeared as the preferred option.
Wikipedia has further information on the role of the Zentrastelle:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Agency_for_Jewish_Emigration_in_Amsterdam
With regard to the discrepancy over the different cover and inside title page, the Anne Frank Stichting’s Knowledge Base again has further information:
https://www.annefrank.org/en/anne-frank/go-in-depth/the-first-edition-of-het-achterhuis
It seems that the discrepancy regarding the span of dates covered by Anne’s diaries was not resolved until the 6th edition of Het Achterhuis. In her original (version A) diary, Anne did not begin writing entries in full until June 14, 1942, which might explain why the publisher chose this date. At a later point, Anne seems to have added the famous opening lines and dated them June 12, 1942, the date of her thirteenth birthday and when she received her diary as a present from her father.
Although “Meeting” Anne discusses both of these topics and questions in some depth, it was only recently that I came across added clarification that I thought would be helpful for readers and which I would have included earlier in the printed edition.