Berlin, 1945
When he entered Berlin, Reymann found that he had inherited almost nothing from his predecessor, von Hauenschild. After further investigation, Reymann realized that Hitler and Joseph Göbbels had ruled that any defeatist talk would lead to immediate execution. No plans were drawn to evacuate the children and the elderly. No food had been stored in case of an enemy siege. The blunt Reymann set to work regardless of these shortcomings. He did all he could to prepare the city for the imminent attack that the top Nazi leaders refused to acknowledge. Reymann was also a notable opponent of the destruction of Berlin's bridges. While destroying the bridges leading into Berlin could slow the Russian invasion, Reymann believed that, if the bridges were destroyed, it would also deprive the city of its electricity, water, and fuel. In Reymann's opinion, Berlin would starve and cease to exist as an influential city in Europe.
Prior to the encirclement of the city, Reymann reportedly urged Hitler to allow him to evacuate the underage population of Berlin. But he was rebuffed.
On 15 April, Reymann met with architect Albert Speer and General Gotthard Heinrici, Commander-in-Chief of Army Group Vistula, to discuss Hitler's Nero Decree. This decree instituted a scorched earth policy. While outwardly responsible for carrying out the decree, Speer was clandestinely campaigning against it. Although Reymann refused to side with Speer, he did promise to confer with Heinrici before destroying vital city infrastructure. Heinrici was also opposed to the scorched earth policy.
By 21 April, Joseph Goebbels, as Reich Commissioner for Berlin, ordered that "no man capable of bearing arms may leave Berlin". Only Reymann, as commander of the Berlin Defense Area, could issue an exemption. Senior Nazi Party officials, who readily condemned members of the army for retreating, rushed to Reymann's headquarters for the necessary authorizations to leave. Reymann was happy to sign over 2,000 passes to get rid of the "armchair warriors". Reymann's Chief-of-Staff, Hans Refior, commented: "The rats are leaving the sinking ship".
Both Wilhelm Burgdorf and Joseph Goebbels convinced Hitler that Reymann was no good. When Reymann chose not to locate his office next to Goebbels' office in the Zoo Tower, Goebbels held this act against him.
On 22 April, Hitler relieved Reymann of his command for his defeatism and replaced him with newly promoted Major-General Ernst Kaether. Kaether was the former Chief-of-Staff to the chief political commissar of the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer). But, Kaether never took command and his orders were cancelled the next day. The result of all of this was that, when the first Soviet units entered the suburbs of Berlin, the was no German commander to coordinate the city's defenses.
One day later, on 23 April, Hitler changed his mind again and made Artillery General (General der Artillerie) Helmuth Weidling the new commander of the Berlin Defense Area. Weidling remained in command of Berlin's defenses to the end and ultimately surrendered the city to Soviet General Vasily Chuikov.
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