Ernst Kaether

Who was Ernst Kaether?

Ernst Kaether was an officer in the German Army during World War II.

As a Lieutenant-Colonel, 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 Generalleutnant Hellmuth Reymann as commander of the Berlin Defense Area and for the defense of the city of Berlin. Kaether was personally promoted to Generalmajor 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 der Artillerie 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.