Ernst Kaether


Ernst Kaether was a general in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany.
On 22 April 1945, Kaether briefly replaced General Hellmuth Reymann as commander of the Berlin Defense Area and for the defense of the city of Berlin. Kaether was personally promoted to Generalleutnant by Adolf Hitler for this command. 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 General Helmuth Weidling. For a brief period between Kaether and Weidling, Hitler himself took personal command of the Berlin defenses. Another newly promoted Generalmajor, Erich Bärenfänger, was Hitler's "deputy" commander of the Berlin Defense Area during this brief period.

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