Hellmuth Reymann (24 November 1892 – 8 December 1988) was an officer in the German Army (Heer) during World War II. He was one of the last commanders of the Berlin Defence Area during the final assault by Soviet forces on Berlin. World War II From 1 October 1942 to 1 October 1943, Reymann commanded the 212th Infantry Division as part of Army Group North. From 1 October 1943 to 1 April 1944, he commanded the 13th Air Force Field Division. Reymann’s division suffered heavy losses in the retreat from Leningrad and was disbanded in April 1944. From 1 April 1944 to 18 November 1944, Reymann commanded the 11th Infantry Division. In October 1944, Reymann’s division was encircled in the Courland Pocket and he was replaced by General Gerhard Feyerabend. Berlin, 1945 In March 1945, Reymann was appointed commander of the Berlin Defence Area and replaced General Bruno Ritter von Hauenschild. When he entered Berlin, Reymann found that he had inherited almost nothing from von Hauenschild. Reymann realised that Adolf Hitler and Joseph Goebbels had ruled that any defeatist talk would lead to immediate execution. No plans were drawn up to evacuate the civilian population, which remained in the city.[1] By 21 April, Goebbels, as Reich Commissioner for Berlin, ordered that “no man capable of bearing arms may leave Berlin”. Only Reymann, as commander of the Berlin Defence 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 authorisations 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”.[2] Both Wilhelm Burgdorf and Goebbels convinced Hitler that Reymann should be relieved of command. When Reymann chose not to locate his office next to Goebbels’s office in the Zoo Tower, Goebbels held that act against him.[3] On 22 April, Hitler relieved Reymann of his command for his defeatism and replaced him with the newly-promoted Generalleutnant Ernst Kaether, who was the former Chief-of-Staff to the chief political commissar of the German Army (Heer). However, Kaether never took command and his orders were cancelled the next day. The result was that when the first Soviet Army units entered the suburbs of Berlin, there was no German commander to coordinate the city’s defences.[3] One day later, Hitler changed his mind again and made Artillery General (General der Artillerie) Helmuth Weidling the new commander of the Berlin Defence Area.[4] Weidling remained in command of Berlin’s defenses to the end and ultimately surrendered the city on 2 May to Soviet General Vasily Chuikov.[5] Army Group Spree After his dismissal as the commander of the Berlin Defence Area, Reymann was given a weak division near Potsdam. The division received a dubious designation “Army Group Spree”.[3] Reymann’s unit could not then link up with General Walther Wenck’s unit, just south of Potsdam, because of the strong Soviet Red Army forces.[6] On 28/29 April, Wenck’s 12th Army held the area around Beelitz long enough for about 20,000 of Reymann’s men to escape through the narrow route to the Elbe. Comments  This is an extremely rare photo and will be featured in a book on Berlin 1945. Please note that this photograph shows Reymann likely in 1945, and could even have been taken just before or during the battle of Berlin. 

This grouping came from a private collector, found after the war in a bunker in Lubanna with a metal detector.  There was a puzzle with this grouping, as two men are listed as buried in Latvia and have graves, until the research was completed.  What is clear, these soldiers had their medals taken off and collected already during the war. Likely a field hospital or something similar. How do we know that? The last medal with research, the soldier was killed and buried one month before his unit arrived in Latvia in 1944. So these were clearly kept in order to either send back or to return them to family but never happened.  All documentation from the archives including the divisional maps and wartime burial locations and unit daily reports will be supplied as a file to the new owner.  PLEASE NOTE: See all images with annotations.  Three Soldiers: Red Army Private – Vasily Zotov – Russian –  41st Anti-Tank Brigade Medal for Courage – 350689 – “During the fight from 11th till 20th of July 1943, he was a driver towing a 76mm Anti Tank cannon on a trailer. Under enemy machine-gun and mortar fire, he restored the car, oil sump, radiator, changed 5 cylinders, re-tightened the bearings, and repaired the water pump. Restored a captured Praga car. From a direct hit by a mine, a car loaded with ammunition and fuel, Comrade Zotov led the burning car out of the cluster of cars to the side for 200 meters, he then loaded part of the ammunition from the burning car.“ Comments: Zotov upgraded his medal holder to look like the early model of the Medal for Courage, commonly seen. Please see the photographs with annotations. Zotov was killed in battle in Latvia 1944 and buried see the photos and maps annotated.   ——— 2. Red Army Guards NCO Balakin – Commander of Artillery Battery. Medal for Courage (Original First Pattern) – 134496 – In the battle near the village of Pshenachina, Smolensk region, on November 27, 1942, he destroyed 2 houses with firing points with direct fire. Destroyed 3 machine guns. Being surrounded near the village of Tsitsina 12/8/1942. blew up 1 enemy tank. In battle, he behaved boldly and bravely, worthy of a medal for courage. Order of Glory – Third Class – 16983 – During the period of hostilities for the villages of Antonova, Rozhnovo, Skryabino, Vorotkovo, Novo Sokolnichesky district of the Kalinin region from 01/27/44 to 02/02/44, the battery of Comrade Balakin destroyed a mortar battery, 6 machine-gun points, the fire of two artillery batteries and 4 machine-gun points of the enemy was suppressed, up to 200 enemy soldiers and officers were destroyed. In the battle for the village of Lamanovo in the Novo Sokolnichesky district of the Kalinin region on 02/07/44, the enemy launched a counterattack on the combat formations of the 3rd battalion of the 258th Guards Rifle Regiment, in 45 seconds a stationary barrage of the battery was called, despite the fact that the firing position was heavily shelled by enemy mortar fire, 2 people of the crew were disabled by mine fragments, communication was interrupted, Comrade Volakin, under enemy fire, fearlessly directed battery fire at the counterattacking enemy, the counterattack was repulsed, the enemy left 3 machine guns on the battlefield and up to 30 people were killed. Our infantry moved forward.”  Interestingly, he was put forward for a second degree Order of Glory, but was given the Order of Glory third class. Balakin, fell in combat near Lubana, Latvia in August of 1944, he is buried in Mierini Latvia.  ———- 3. Red Army NCO Neudachin – Blacksmith Killed in Estonia 1944 – Buried at Kolkhoz May 1st – Grave Number 2 – 31.07.1944 Medal for Military Merit – 1019025 – Blacksmith in Veterinary infirmary – Red Army Nevrozy – “During the battles from 20.6 to 3.07.1944, under artillery and mortar fire he evacuated successfully eight wounded horses. He has worked as a blacksmith forging since 1942, he forges horses perfectly. Born in 1915, Russian Nationality, Member of FKP, drafted by Ishimbayevsky RVC in 1940, 1942: Censored information.”   —– Original Footage of the Riga Offensive 1944 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOb-oMcjH1A