Historic Dutch tree to live on

When the horse chestnut tree in the grounds of the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam fell last month, it was considered a sad occasion for all involved.

The 150-year-old specimen had provided Ms Frank with her only view while hiding from the Nazi soldiers during the second world war.

It had fallen victim to bleeding canker for the past decade and was also suffering from an infestation of horse chestnut leaf miner.

However, it was a force-ten storm which finally brought the tree down, in spite of the metal frame propping it up.

All is not lost though, as the Anne Frank Trust had the foresight to take grafts from the tree, giving one to the Batsford Foundation.

Garden and greenhouse experts at the Batsford Arboretum are now set to plant the sapling at the Gloucestershire site, which will ensure that the historic specimen lives on.

"The demise of such an important and cherished tree is a very sad event indeed, but it is heartening to know that Anne Frank’s tree will live on through its young offspring," Batsford trustee Tony Russell said.

Anne Frank hid in her Amsterdam home with her family for two years before someone betrayed them and they were sent to a concentration camp, where she, her sister and her mother died.