Ernst Kaether
Ernst Kaether (25 September 1903 – 11 August 1999) was an officer in the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer) during World War II.
As a Lieutenant-Colonel (Oberstleutnant), Kaether commanded the 14th Infantry Regiment of the 5th Jäger Division. On 10 December 1942, as commander of this regiment, he received a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
On 22 April 1945, Kaether briefly replaced Lieutenant-General (Generalleutnant) Hellmuth Reymann as commander of the Berlin Defense Area and for the defense of the city of Berlin. Kaether was personally promoted to Major-General (Generalmajor) by Adolf Hitler for this command. Prior to this, Kaether had been the Chief-of-Staff to the German Army's political commissar. [1]
However, Kaether never actually took command of Berlin's defenses for the Battle of Berlin. Before he could take command, Hitler cancelled his promotions and Kaether was replaced by Artillery General (General der Artillerie) Helmuth Weidling. [2] For a brief period between Kaether and Weidling, Hitler himself took personal command of the Berlin defenses. Another newly promoted Major-General (Generalmajor), Erich Bärenfänger, was Hitler's "deputy" commander of the Berlin Defense Area during this brief period.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Beevor, Antony. Berlin: The Downfall 1945, Penguin Books, 2002, ISBN 0-670-88695-5
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Beevor, Antony. Berlin: The Downfall 1945, Penguin Books, 2002, ISBN 0-670-88695-5, Page 268
- ^ Beevor, Antony. Berlin: The Downfall 1945, Penguin Books, 2002, ISBN 0-670-88695-5, Page 286
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Hellmuth Reymann |
Commanders of the Berlin Defense Area (Never in actual command) 22 April 1945 |
Succeeded by Erich Bärenfänger |
