Skip to main content

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
  • Site
    • English home page
    • المصادر بالعربية
    • Πηγές στα Ελληνικά
    • Recursos en español
    • منابع موجود به زبان فارسی
    • Ressources en français
    • Gyűjtemény és tudástár magyar nyelven
    • Sumber Bahasa Indonesia
    • Materiali e risorse in italiano
    • 日本語のリソース
    • 한국어 자료
    • Recursos em Português (do Brasil)
    • Материалы на русском языке
    • Türkçe Kaynaklar
    • اُردو ری سورسز
    • 中文参考资料
  • Events
  • Plan Your Visit
  • Support the Museum
  • Connect
  • Donate
  • Learn About The Holocaust
  • Remember Survivors and Victims
  • Confront Genocide and Antisemitism

  • Home
  • Learn about The Holocaust
Holocaust Encyclopedia

We’ve been reworking our Holocaust Encyclopedia, and we would love for you to explore the new experience. Click the button at right to start using the new version. The version you are viewing now will remain online until June 30, 2018.

  • Introduction to the Holocaust
  • Information for Students
  • Timeline of Events
  • Holocaust Encyclopedia
  • Holocaust and Related Maps
  • The Holocaust: A Learning Site for Students
This page is also available in:
  • عربيArabic
  • فارسیFarsi
  • Bahasa IndonesiaIndonesian
  • ItalianoItalian
  • 日本語Japanese
  • 한국어Korean
  • Português (BR)Portuguese-Brazilian
  • РусскийRussian
  • TürkçeTurkish
  • اُردوUrdu
  • 简体中文Chinese

ID Card

Back to Article

Ilse Silten

Born: February 23, 1909, Berlin, Germany

Ilse Silten

Ilse, born Ilse Teppich, was the eldest of two daughters born to a Jewish family in the German capital of Berlin. Her father owned a dry cleaning business in the city. When Ilse finished secondary school, she was sent to a finishing school in Switzerland where she studied to be a photographer. In 1931 she married Fritz Silten.

1933-39: In 1933 Ilse gave birth to the couple's only child, a daughter named Gabriele. Five years later, when Fritz's father was forced by the Nazis to sell his business for a fraction of its value to an "Aryan" German [Aryanization], Fritz resolved to move his family out of Berlin. He went to Amsterdam, opened a pharmacy and then sent for Ilse and their daughter. Fritz's mother, Marta, joined them a year later.

1940-44: In May 1940 German troops occupied Amsterdam. Soon after, Ilse's husband was named to the German-appointed Jewish council. The majority of Amsterdam's Jews were herded into a ghetto in the city, but Ilse and her family were allowed to stay in their apartment. In June 1943 the Siltens were sent to the Westerbork transit camp. A month later, rather than be deported, Ilse's mother-in-law committed suicide. In early 1944 Ilse and her family were deported to the Theresienstadt ghetto in Czechoslovakia.

Ilse, Fritz and Gabriele were liberated when Soviet troops took Theresienstadt in May 1945. The Silten family returned to Amsterdam in June of that same year.

Browse all ID Cards

Browse all Oral Histories

  • Previous
  •  
  • Next

Copyright © United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, DC

This page is also available in:

  • عربيArabic
  • فارسیFarsi
  • Bahasa IndonesiaIndonesian
  • ItalianoItalian
  • 日本語Japanese
  • 한국어Korean
  • Português (BR)Portuguese-Brazilian
  • РусскийRussian
  • TürkçeTurkish
  • اُردوUrdu
  • 简体中文Chinese

Museum Information

  • Today at the Museum
  • Plan Your Visit
  • Exhibitions and Collections
  • Traveling Exhibitions

Resources for Academics and Research

  • Ask a Research Question
  • Research in Collections
  • Research about Survivors and Victims
  • Academic Programs

Resources for Educators

  • Teaching about the Holocaust
  • Programs for Teachers
  • Teaching Materials
  • Holocaust Encyclopedia

Resources for Professionals and Student Leaders

  • Law Enforcement
  • Military
  • Judiciary
  • Faith and Interfaith Communities
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

100 Raoul Wallenberg Place, SW
Washington, DC 20024-2126
Main telephone: 202.488.0400
TTY: 202.488.0406

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google Plus
  • Youtube
  • Pinterest
  • Instagram
  • About the Museum
  • Contact the Museum
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • Accessibility
  • Legal
×

#USHMM #AskWhy

FirstPerson

Conversations with Survivors
of the Holocaust

Watch Now

Join us right now to watch a live interview with a survivor, followed by a question-and-answer session.