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prince william kate middleton raf base© Photo: Getty Images

Prince and Princess of Wales share moving personal message following sad death

Prince William and Princess Kate shared the sad message on Twitter

Matthew Moore
Online News Writer & Diversity and Inclusion Lead
January 18, 2023
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Over their years as working royals, Prince William and Princess Kate have met countless inspirational individuals, and on Wednesday they expressed their sadness following the death of one of them.

It was confirmed on Wednesday that Holocaust survivor Zigi Shipper had passed away at the age of 93, and on his birthday. Zigi was born in Poland and forced to work in a metal factory inside the Lodz Ghetto before being transferred to Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1944. He was then transferred to the Stutthof concentration camp in 1945 and was on a death march when the camp was liberated by British forces.

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Zigi would go on to speak about the Holocaust at numerous events and met the Prince and Princess of Wales when they visited Stutthof in 2017.

In their personal tweet, the royals penned: "In 2017, we had the honour to meet Holocaust survivor, Zigi Shipper on our visit to Stutthof.

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"We were sad to learn earlier today of his passing. He will be truly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends. W&C."

During their 2017 visit to Poland, the pair spent an hour inside the camp, where 65,000 people were killed during the Nazi occupation.

Prince William and Kate Middleton walking with Zigi Shipper and Manfred Goldberg© Photo: Getty Images

William and Kate met Zigi (back) when they visited the Stutthof concentration camp

They toured the site, met with museum staff and listened to testimonies from survivors, including Zigi and his close friend, Manfred Goldberg, who led them in prayer.

It was the first time that both Zigi and Manfred had returned to the camp since their liberation, with both men having started new lives in the United Kingdom.

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William and Kate also left an emotional message in the camp's guest book and were shown shoes that had been left behind by victims inside the camp.

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Although they had travelled to the country with children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, the young royals, who were five and two respectively, did not join their parents for the emotional visit.

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