Queen lays wreath at Bergen-Belsen

The camp was liberated by British Forces 70 years ago, in April 1945.

Holocaust survivors Rudi Oppenheimer and Anita Lasker-Wallfisch met the royals and spoke to them about their experiences at the camp and how they survived. British liberators Bernard Levy and Captain Eric Brown also met the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.

Mr Oppenheimer said: “It was so exciting to talk with her. I told her that my parents had died here, and she was very kind.

“I spent quite a bit of time talking to the Duke. I was holding my brother's book about our experience in the Holocaust, and he asked me what it was.

“He said ‘is that your only copy’ and I said ‘no, it is yours’ and he took it.

“It is amazing to see the Queen here and I’m so happy she has come, not just for the survivors and victims’ but for the liberators - what they had to face was awful.”

Cpt Brown said: “It was fascinating experience and a great day for both countries.

“The Queen and the Duke both asked what the camp was like on that day that we entered. I told them it is very difficult to relate how it is today to how it was then, because when we came in and there were corpses everywhere.

“There is a message in her visit to the young people of Germany - they are not responsible for the actions of their ancestors, and they should never forget it, but the relationship between our countries is now strong."

He added: “The Duke had a good laugh with me. He said ‘what are you doing here as a naval officer’, we laughed, I told him I was called upon for my country.”

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis attended the memorial, with other faith leaders.

He told the Queen: "Your recognition of Jewish pain and suffering is appreciated by Jews right around the world."

Jewish leaders called the Queen's visit "tremendously significant" .

Holocaust Educational Trust chief executive Karen Pollock, who also presented to the Queen, said: “Today has been very special. Seeing Rudi talk to Her Majesty the Queen about his family at Bergen-Belsen was deeply moving.

"Queen and Duke of Edinburgh were clearly interested in what survivors and liberators had to say.

"Her Majesty's visit emphasises the importance of remembering this period in our history, further ensuring that even more people will be aware of the terrible events of the Holocaust.”

Sir Peter Bazalgette, chair of the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, said: “The ruins of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp tell the story of humanity at its very worst and very best.

“On this site man committed horrific evils against his fellow man and yet, during its liberation by the British army, it was also a place of bravery, compassion and survival.

"It is a tremendous privilege to stand alongside Her Majesty the Queen to honour British veterans of that liberation and the remarkable survivors of the horrors that took place here.

"Britain must never forget what was endured and what was lost in this place.”

He added: “And so as part of its work to create a national memorial and world-leading learning centre, the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation has begun a collaboration with the team at Bergen Belsen, to create groundbreaking digital records using the latest innovative British technology.

“This work has already discovered part of the camp’s inadequate sewage line and the remains of the crematorium, helping build a more complete picture of this historic site.”

On Wednesday, the Queen told German leaders that her visit to the camp was evidence of the "complete reconciliation" between Britain and Germany following the war.

Speaking at a state banquet in Berlin, the Queen reminded guests that her cousin, the Duke of Gloucester, had been to the camp earlier this year.

"These visits underline the complete reconciliation between our countries," she said.

"Since 1945 the United Kingdom has determined to number among Germany's very strongest friends in Europe. In the intervening decades, Britain and Germany have achieved so much by working together. I have every confidence that we will continue to do so in the years ahead."

Addressing German president Joachim Gauck, Chancellor Angela Merkel, and British Prime Minister David Cameron, the Queen added: "In our lives, Mr President, we have seen the worst but also the best of our continent. We have witnessed how quickly things can change for the better.

"But we know that we must work hard to maintain the benefits of the post-war world. We know that division in Europe is dangerous and that we must guard against it in the West as well as in the East of our continent. That remains a common endeavour."

President Gauck has described the camp as “an inconceivable abyss in the midst of our homeland”.

Speaking ahead of meeting the Queen, survivor Rudi Oppenheimer said: "I feel very privileged that I have been invited to meet the Queen at Bergen-Belsen. It is a great honour that she will be paying her respects at a place where our families died.

"It is also a great thing that the liberators are being honoured; we remain grateful to the British Army for liberating the camp in April 1945."