Ms Schott-Neuse, 45, tracked down Mr Hirschmann after stumbling upon an article from 2009 which mentioned that he had returned to the property during the 1980s.
“It is a shame that I never looked into the Nazi past of my family,” she wrote, adding that she had learnt about the Holocaust at school.
“It seems to be only now that we — the grandchildren generation of the men and women who became criminals — start to ask tough questions of the degree and way our families have been involved and actively contributed not only to a war but to the Shoah.”
Welcoming the letter, Mr Hirschmann wrote back to say he did not hold Ms Schott-Neuse responsible.
“While I would never disregard the lessons of the past, I have lived my life by looking forward, not backward. I hope you will do likewise,” he wrote.
