Editing Kapp Putsch (section)

===Occupation of Berlin===
[[Image:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1971-037-42, Kapp-Putsch, Berlin crop.jpg|thumb|upright|Hermann Ehrhardt during the Putsch]]
The reluctance to shed blood was one-sided. On the evening of 12 March, Ehrhardt ordered his brigade to march into Berlin, to "ruthlessly break any resistance" (''jeden Widerstand rücksichtslos zu brechen'') and to occupy the centre of the city with the government buildings. The Brigade, sporting [[Western use of the swastika in the early 20th century|swastika]]s on their helmets and vehicles, started off towards Berlin at around 10:00&nbsp;pm. An hour later the ''Gruppenkommando'' knew about it and informed Noske. Two general officers met Ehrhardt and convinced him to give the government a chance to surrender before being taken into custody, assuming that all of Lüttwitz's demands were accepted by 7:00&nbsp;am. This was reported to Noske who met with Ebert. Ebert then called a cabinet meeting for 4:00&nbsp;am. At 1:00&nbsp;am Noske asked the senior commanders to his office in the [[Bendlerblock]].<ref name="Haffner"/>{{rp|221–222}}

Noske asked the commanders to defend the government buildings but was turned down. All but two of the officers (one of them was Reinhardt, ''Chef der Heeresleitung'') refused to follow an order to shoot at the rebel troops. Some suggested negotiations, others claimed that the troops would not understand an order to fire, some argued that the regular units would not be able to defeat the elite ''Marinebrigade''. Seeckt spoke about comradeship.<ref name="Haffner"/>{{rp|222}} His exact words were not recorded, but have been reported as: "troops do not fire on troops. So, you perhaps intend, Herr Minister, that a battle be fought before the ''[[Brandenburger Tor]]'' between troops that have fought side by side against a common enemy? When Reichswehr fires on Reichswehr all comradeship within the officers' corps will have vanished".<ref name=gl/>{{page number|date=March 2022}} Others have quoted Seeckt's words as the even more succinct: "Reichswehr does not fire on Reichswehr!"<ref name="BPB"/>{{rp|26}}

Noske, depressed enough by the disloyalty of the military to speak about suicide to an aide, reported to the cabinet at 4:00&nbsp;am.<ref name="Haffner"/>{{rp|222}} At a confused meeting at the [[Reichskanzlei]], the undefended cabinet took two decisions: to flee the city and to issue a call for a general strike. These were not unanimous, the Vice-Chancellor [[Eugen Schiffer]] and some of the other non-SPD ministers refused to leave the city, to preserve the opportunity to negotiate with the putschists. Only Ebert and the SPD ministers signed the call for a general strike. At 6:15&nbsp;am they had to interrupt the meeting and flee. Within ten minutes of their departure, the ''Marinebrigade'' reached the ''Brandenburger Tor'', where it was met by Lüttwitz, Ludendorff, Kapp and their followers. Shortly thereafter, Kapp's men moved into the Reichskanzlei.<ref name="Haffner"/>{{rp|222}} Supported by a battalion of regular Reichswehr, they occupied the government quarter.<ref name="BPB"/>{{rp|26}}

Kapp declared himself [[Chancellor of Germany|Chancellor]] (''Reichskanzler'') and formed a provisional government.<ref name="BPB"/>{{rp|26}} Lüttwitz served as commander of the armed forces and Minister of Defence. Several well-known conservatives and former secretaries of state were invited to assume government positions but declined.<ref name="eb">{{Cite EB1922|wstitle=Kapp, Wolfgang}}</ref> International con-man [[Ignaz Trebitsch-Lincoln]] became Kapp's press censor.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wasserstein |first=Bernard |author-link=Bernard Wasserstein |title=The Secret Lives of Trebitsch Lincoln |publisher=[[Yale University Press]] |year=1988 |isbn=0-300-04076-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/secretlivesoftre00wass }}</ref>