Battle of Kursk results briefly. Battle of Kursk: Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

Dates and events of the Great Patriotic War

The Great Patriotic War began on June 22, 1941, on the day of All Saints who shone in the Russian land. The Barbarossa plan - a plan for a lightning war with the USSR - was signed by Hitler on December 18, 1940. Now it has been put into action. German troops - the strongest army in the world - advanced in three groups ("North", "Center", "South"), aimed at quickly capturing the Baltic states and then Leningrad, Moscow, and Kyiv in the south.

Kursk Bulge

In 1943, the Nazi command decided to conduct its general offensive in the Kursk region. The fact is that the operational position of the Soviet troops on the Kursk ledge, concave towards the enemy, promised great prospects for the Germans. Two large fronts could be surrounded here at once, as a result of which a large gap would have formed, allowing the enemy to carry out major operations in the south and northeast directions.

The Soviet command was preparing for this offensive. From mid-April, the General Staff began to develop a plan for both a defensive operation near Kursk and a counteroffensive. And by the beginning of July 1943, the Soviet command completed preparations for the battle on Kursk Bulge.

July 5, 1943 German troops began the offensive. The first attack was repulsed. However, then the Soviet troops had to withdraw. The fighting was very intense and the Germans failed to achieve significant success. The enemy did not solve any of the assigned tasks and was eventually forced to stop the offensive and go on the defensive.

The struggle on the southern face of the Kursk ledge, in the zone of the Voronezh Front, was also exceptionally tense.

On July 12, 1943 (on the day of the holy supreme apostles Peter and Paul), the largest in military history took place. tank battle near Prokhorovka. The battle unfolded on both sides of the Belgorod-Kursk railway, and the main events took place southwest of Prokhorovka. As Chief Marshal of the Armored Forces P. A. Rotmistrov, the former commander of the 5th Guards Tank Army, recalled, the struggle was extremely fierce, “tanks jumped on each other, grappled, could no longer disperse, fought to the death until one of them flared up torch or did not stop with broken tracks. But the wrecked tanks, if their weapons did not fail, continued to fire. The battlefield was littered with burning German and our tanks for an hour. As a result of the battle near Prokhorovka, none of the parties was able to solve the tasks facing it: the enemy - to break through to Kursk; 5th Guards Tank Army - go to the Yakovlevo area, defeating the opposing enemy. But the way to the enemy to Kursk was closed and the day of July 12, 1943 became the day of the collapse of the German offensive near Kursk.

On July 12, in the Oryol direction, the troops of Bryansk and Western fronts, and on July 15 - Central.

On August 5, 1943 (the day of the celebration of the Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God, as well as the icon of "Joy of All Who Sorrow"), Orel was released. On the same day Belgorod was liberated by the troops of the Steppe Front. The Oryol offensive operation lasted 38 days and ended on August 18 with the defeat of a powerful group of Nazi troops aimed at Kursk from the north.

The events on the southern wing of the Soviet-German front had a significant impact on the further course of events in the Belgorod-Kursk sector. On July 17, the troops of the Southern and Southwestern Fronts went on the offensive. On the night of July 19, the general withdrawal of the Nazi troops began on the southern face of the Kursk salient.

On August 23, 1943, the strongest battle of the Great Patriotic War ended with the liberation of Kharkov - the Battle of Kursk (it lasted 50 days). It ended with the defeat of the main group German troops.

Liberation of Smolensk (1943)

Smolensk offensive operation August 7 - October 2, 1943. In the course of hostilities and the nature of the tasks performed, the Smolensk strategic offensive operation is divided into three stages. The first stage covers the period of hostilities from 7 to 20 August. During this stage, the troops of the Western Front carried out the Spas-Demenskaya operation. The troops of the left wing of the Kalinin Front began the Dukhovshchinskaya offensive operation. At the second stage (August 21 - September 6), the troops of the Western Front carried out the Yelnensko-Dorogobuzh operation, and the troops of the left wing of the Kalinin Front continued to conduct the Dukhovshchinskaya offensive operation. At the third stage (September 7 - October 2), the troops of the Western Front, in cooperation with the troops of the left wing of the Kalinin Front, carried out the Smolensk-Roslavl operation, and the main forces of the Kalinin Front carried out the Dukhovshchinsky-Demidov operation.

On September 25, 1943, the troops of the Western Front liberated Smolensk, the most important strategic center of defense of the Nazi troops in the western direction.

As a result of the successful implementation of the Smolensk offensive operation, our troops broke into the enemy's heavily fortified multi-lane and deeply echeloned defenses and advanced 200-225 km to the West.

The beginning of the combat path of the Ural Volunteer Tank Corps

The defeat of the fascist German army near Stalingrad in the winter of 1942-1943 shook the fascist bloc to its foundations. For the first time since the beginning of the Second World War, Nazi Germany, in all its inevitability, faced the formidable specter of inevitable defeat. Its military power, the morale of the army and the population were thoroughly undermined, and the prestige in the eyes of the allies was seriously shaken. In order to improve Germany's internal political situation and prevent the disintegration of the fascist coalition, the Nazi command decided in the summer of 1943 to conduct a major offensive operation on the central sector of the Soviet-German front. With this offensive, it hoped to defeat the grouping of Soviet troops located on the Kursk salient, seize the strategic initiative again and turn the course of the war in its favor. By the summer of 1943, the situation on the Soviet-German front had already changed in favor of Soviet Union. By the beginning of the Battle of Kursk, the overall superiority in manpower and means was on the side of the Red Army: in people by 1.1 times, in artillery - by 1.7, in tanks - by 1.4 and in combat aircraft - by 2 times.

The Battle of Kursk occupies a special place in the Great Patriotic War. It lasted 50 days and nights, from July 5 to August 23, 1943. This battle has no equal in its bitterness and stubbornness of the struggle.

The goal of the Wehrmacht: the general plan of the German command was to encircle and destroy the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts defending in the Kursk region. If successful, it was supposed to expand the front of the offensive and return the strategic initiative. To implement his plans, the enemy concentrated powerful strike groups, which numbered over 900 thousand people, about 10 thousand guns and mortars, up to 2700 tanks and assault guns, about 2050 aircraft. Great hopes were placed on latest tanks"Tiger" and "Panther", Ferdinand assault guns, Focke-Wulf-190-A fighter planes and Heinkel-129 attack aircraft.

The purpose of the Red Army: the Soviet command decided to first bleed the enemy strike groups in defensive battles, and then go on the counteroffensive.

The battle that began immediately took on a grandiose scope and was of an extremely tense character. Our troops did not flinch. They met the avalanche of enemy tanks and infantry with unprecedented stamina and courage. The offensive of the enemy strike groups was suspended. Only at the cost of huge losses did he manage to penetrate our defenses in some areas. On the Central Front - 10-12 kilometers, on the Voronezh - up to 35 kilometers. Finally buried the Nazi operation "Citadel", the largest in the entire Second world war oncoming tank battle near Prokhorovka. It happened on July 12th. 1200 tanks and self-propelled guns. This battle was won by the Soviet soldiers. The Nazis, having lost up to 400 tanks during the day of the battle, were forced to abandon the offensive.

On July 12, the second stage of the Battle of Kursk began - the counteroffensive of the Soviet troops. 5th of August Soviet troops liberated the cities of Orel and Belgorod. On the evening of August 5, in honor of this major success, a victorious salute was given in Moscow for the first time in two years of the war. Since that time, artillery salutes have constantly announced the glorious victories of Soviet weapons. On August 23, Kharkov was liberated.

Thus ended the Battle of the Kursk Fiery Bulge. During it, 30 selected enemy divisions were defeated. The Nazi troops lost about 500,000 men, 1,500 tanks, 3,000 guns and 3,700 aircraft. For courage and heroism, over 100 thousand Soviet soldiers, participants in the Battle of the Fiery Arc, were awarded orders and medals. The Battle of Kursk ended with a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War in favor of the Red Army.

Losses in the Battle of Kursk.

Type of losses	Red Army	Wehrmacht	Ratio
Personnel
Guns and mortars
Tanks and self-propelled guns
Aircraft

UDTK on the Kursk Bulge. Oryol offensive operation

Baptism of fire in the battle on the Kursk Bulge received the 30th Ural Volunteer Tank Corps, which is part of the 4th tank army.

T-34 tanks - 202 units, T-70 - 7, BA-64 armored vehicles - 68,

self-propelled 122-mm guns - 16, 85-mm guns - 12,

installations M-13 - 8, 76-mm guns - 24, 45-mm guns - 32,

37 mm guns - 16, 120 mm mortars - 42, 82 mm mortars - 52.

The army, commanded by Lieutenant General of the Tank Troops Vasily Mikhailovich Badanov, arrived at the Bryansk Front on the eve of the battles that began on July 5, 1943, and during the counteroffensive of the Soviet troops was brought into battle in the Oryol direction. The Ural Volunteer Tank Corps under the command of Lieutenant General Georgy Semenovich Rodin had the task of advancing from the Seredichi region to the south, cutting off the enemy’s communications on the Bolkhov-Khotynets line, reaching the area of ​​the village of Zlyn, and then saddling the Orel-Bryansk railway and highway and cutting off the escape route of the Oryol grouping of the Nazis to the west. And the Urals fulfilled the order.

On July 29, Lieutenant General Rodin set the task of the 197th Sverdlovsk and 243rd Molotov tank brigades: to force the Nugr River in cooperation with the 30th motorized rifle brigade (MSBR), to capture the village of Borilovo and then advance in the direction locality Vishnevsky. The village of Borilovo was located on a high bank and dominated surrounding area, and from the bell tower of the church, it was visible for several kilometers in a circle. All this made it easier for the enemy to conduct a defense and hampered the actions of the advancing corps units. At 20:00 on July 29, after a 30-minute artillery preparation and a volley of guards mortars, two tank motorized rifle brigades began to force the Nugr River. Under the cover of tank fire, the company of Senior Lieutenant A.P. Nikolaev was the first to cross the Nugr River, capturing the southern outskirts of the village of Borilovo. By the morning of July 30, the battalion of the 30th Motorized Rifle Brigade, supported by tanks, captured the village of Borilovo despite the stubborn resistance of the enemy. All units of the Sverdlovsk brigade of the 30th UDTK were concentrated here. By order of the corps commander at 10:30, the brigade launched an offensive in the direction - height 212.2. The assault was heavy. The 244th Chelyabinsk Tank Brigade, which was previously in the reserve of the 4th Army, graduated from it.

Hero of the Soviet Union Alexander Petrovich Nikolaev, company commander of a motorized rifle battalion of the 197th Guards Sverdlovsk Tank Brigade. From personal archiveON THE.Kirillova.

On July 31, in the liberated Borilovo, the heroically dead tankers and machine gunners were buried, including the commanders of tank battalions: Major Chazov and Captain Ivanov. The mass heroism of the corps soldiers, shown in the battles from July 27 to 29, was highly appreciated. Only in the Sverdlovsk brigade, 55 soldiers, sergeants and officers were awarded government awards for these battles. In the battle for Borilovo, the Sverdlovsk sanitary instructor Anna Alekseevna Kvanskova accomplished a feat. She rescued the wounded and, replacing the artillerymen who were out of action, brought shells to firing positions. A. A. Kvanskova was awarded the Order of the Red Star, and later for her heroism she was awarded the Orders of Glory III and II degrees.

Guards sergeant Anna Alekseevna Kvanskova assists the lieutenantA. A.Lysin, 1944.

Photo by M. Insarov, 1944. TsDOOSO. F.221. OP.3.D.1672

The exceptional courage of the Urals warriors, their readiness to carry out a combat mission without sparing their lives, aroused admiration. But the pain from the losses suffered was mixed with him. It seemed that they were too great in comparison with the achieved results.

A column of German prisoners of war captured in the battles in the Oryol direction, USSR, 1943.

Destroyed German vehicles during the battles on the Kursk Bulge, USSR, 1943.

70 years ago the Great Battle of Kursk began. The Battle of Kursk is one of the most important battles of the Second World War in terms of its scope, forces and means involved, tension, results and military-strategic consequences. The Great Battle of Kursk lasted 50 incredibly difficult days and nights (July 5 - August 23, 1943). In Soviet and Russian historiography, it is customary to divide this battle into two stages and three operations: the defensive stage - the Kursk defensive operation (July 5 - 12); offensive - Orel (July 12 - August 18) and Belgorod-Kharkov (August 3 - 23) offensive operations. The Germans called the offensive part of their operation "Citadel". In this great battle from the USSR and Germany, about 2.2 million people participated, about 7.7 thousand tanks, self-propelled guns and assault guns, over 29 thousand guns and mortars (with a reserve of more than 35 thousand), more than 4 thousand combat aircraft .

During the winter 1942-1943. offensive of the Red Army and the forced withdrawal of Soviet troops during the Kharkov defensive operation of 1943, the so-called. Kursk ledge. The "Kursk Bulge", a ledge facing west, was up to 200 km wide and up to 150 km deep. During April - June 1943, there was an operational pause on the Eastern Front, during which the Soviet and German armed forces were intensely preparing for the summer campaign, which was to be decisive in this war.

The forces of the Central and Voronezh fronts were located on the Kursk ledge, threatening the flanks and rear of the German army groups Center and South. In turn, the German command, having created powerful strike groups on the Oryol and Belgorod-Kharkov bridgeheads, could deliver strong flank attacks on the Soviet troops defending in the Kursk region, surround them and destroy them.

Plans and forces of the parties

Germany. In the spring of 1943, when the enemy forces were exhausted and the mudslide set in, negating the possibility of a quick offensive, it was time to prepare plans for the summer campaign. Despite the defeat in the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of the Caucasus, the Wehrmacht retained offensive power and was a very dangerous adversary who craved revenge. Moreover, the German command carried out a number of mobilization measures and by the beginning of the summer campaign of 1943, compared with the number of troops at the beginning of the summer campaign of 1942, the number of Wehrmacht had increased. On the Eastern Front, excluding the SS troops and Air force, there were 3.1 million people, almost the same as there were in the Wehrmacht at the beginning of the campaign to the East on June 22, 1941 - 3.2 million people. In terms of the number of formations, the Wehrmacht of the 1943 model surpassed the German armed forces of the 1941 period.

For the German command, unlike the Soviet, a wait-and-see strategy, pure defense, was unacceptable. Moscow could afford to wait with serious offensive operations, time played on it - the power of the armed forces grew, enterprises evacuated to the east began to work at full capacity (they even increased production compared to the pre-war level), partisan struggle in the German rear expanded. The probability of the landing of the Allied armies in Western Europe, the opening of a second front, grew. In addition, to create a strong defense on the Eastern Front, extending from the Northern Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea, it was not possible. In particular, the Army Group "South" was forced to defend with 32 divisions a front with a length of up to 760 km - from Taganrog on the Black Sea to the Sumy region. The balance of forces allowed the Soviet troops, if the enemy was limited only to defense, to carry out offensive operations in various sectors of the Eastern Front, concentrating the maximum number of forces and means, pulling up reserves. The German army could not stick only to defense, it was the path to defeat. Only a maneuver war, with breakthroughs in the front line, with access to the flanks and rear of the Soviet armies, allowed us to hope for a strategic turning point in the war. A major success on the Eastern Front made it possible to hope, if not for victory in the war, then for a satisfactory political solution.

On March 13, 1943, Adolf Hitler signed Operational Order No. 5, where he set the task of preempting the offensive of the Soviet army and "imposing his will on at least one of the sectors of the front." In other sectors of the front, the task of the troops is reduced to bleeding the advancing enemy forces on defensive lines created in advance. Thus, the strategy of the Wehrmacht was chosen as early as March 1943. It remained to determine where to strike. The Kursk ledge arose at the same time, in March 1943, during the German counteroffensive. Therefore, Hitler, in Order No. 5, demanded converging strikes on the Kursk salient, wanting to destroy the Soviet troops stationed on it. However, in March 1943, the German troops in this direction were significantly weakened by previous battles, and the plan to attack the Kursk salient had to be postponed indefinitely.

On April 15, Hitler signed Operational Order No. 6. Operation Citadel was scheduled to begin as soon as weather conditions allowed. The Army Group "South" was supposed to strike from the Tomarovka-Belgorod line, break through the Soviet front at the Prilepa-Oboyan line, connect at Kursk and east of it with the formations of the Amii "Center". Army Group "Center" struck from the line of Trosna - an area south of Maloarkhangelsk. Its troops were to break through the front in the Fatezh-Veretenovo section, concentrating the main efforts on the eastern flank. And connect with the Army Group "South" in the Kursk region and east of it. The troops between the shock groups, on the western front of the Kursk ledge - the forces of the 2nd Army, were to organize local attacks and, when the Soviet troops retreated, immediately go on the offensive with all their might. The plan was pretty simple and obvious. They wanted to cut off the Kursk ledge with converging blows from the north and south - on the 4th day it was supposed to surround and then destroy the Soviet troops located on it (Voronezh and Central Fronts). This made it possible to create a vast gap in the Soviet front and seize the strategic initiative. In the Orel region, the 9th Army represented the main strike force, in the Belgorod region - the 4th Panzer Army and the Kempf task force. Operation Citadel was to be followed by Operation Panther - a strike to the rear of the Southwestern Front, an offensive in a northeast direction in order to reach the deep rear of the central group of the Red Army and create a threat to Moscow.

The start of the operation was scheduled for mid-May 1943. The commander of Army Group South, Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, believed that it was necessary to strike as early as possible, preempting Soviet offensive in the Donbass. He was supported by the commander of Army Group Center, Field Marshal Gunther Hans von Kluge. But not all German commanders shared his point of view. Walter Model, commander of the 9th Army, had great authority in the eyes of the Fuhrer and on May 3 prepared a report in which he expressed doubts about the possibility of the successful implementation of Operation Citadel if it began in mid-May. The basis of his skepticism was intelligence data on the defensive potential of the opposing 9th Army of the Central Front. The Soviet command prepared a deeply echeloned and well-organized line of defense, strengthened the artillery and anti-tank potential. And the mechanized units were taken away from the forward positions, removing the enemy from a possible strike.

On May 3-4, a discussion of this report was held in Munich. According to the Model, the Central Front under the command of Konstantin Rokossovsky had an almost double superiority in the number of combat units and equipment over the 9th German Army. 15 infantry divisions of the Model had the number of infantry half as much as regular, in some divisions 3 out of 9 regular infantry battalions were disbanded. Artillery batteries instead of four they had three guns, and in some batteries 1-2 guns. By May 16, the divisions of the 9th Army had an average "combat strength" (the number of soldiers directly involved in the battle) of 3.3 thousand people. For comparison, 8 infantry divisions of the 4th Panzer Army and the Kempf group had a “combat strength” of 6.3 thousand people. And the infantry was needed to break into the defensive lines of the Soviet troops. In addition, the 9th Army tested serious problems with transport. Army Group "South", after the Stalingrad disaster, received formations, which in 1942 were reorganized in the rear. The Model had mostly infantry divisions who had been at the front since 1941 and needed urgent replenishment.

Model's report made a strong impression on A. Hitler. Other commanders were unable to put forward serious arguments against the calculations of the commander of the 9th Army. As a result, we decided to postpone the start of the operation for a month. This decision of Hitler would then become one of the most criticized by the German generals, who pushed their mistakes onto the Supreme Commander.

Otto Moritz Walter Model (1891 - 1945).

I must say that although this delay led to an increase in the striking power of the German troops, the Soviet armies were also seriously strengthened. The balance of power between Model's army and Rokossovsky's front from May to early July did not improve, and even worsened for the Germans. In April 1943 the Central Front had 538,400 men, 920 tanks, 7,800 guns, and 660 aircraft; in early July - 711.5 thousand people, 1785 tanks and self-propelled guns, 12.4 thousand guns and 1050 aircraft. The 9th Model Army in mid-May had 324,900 men, about 800 tanks and assault guns, and 3,000 guns. In early July, the 9th Army reached 335 thousand people, 1014 tanks, 3368 guns. In addition, it was in May that the Voronezh Front began to receive anti-tank mines, which would become a real scourge of German armored vehicles in the Battle of Kursk. The Soviet economy worked more efficiently, replenishing troops with equipment faster than German industry.

The plan for the advance of the troops of the 9th Army from the Oryol direction was somewhat different from the typical reception for the German school - Model was going to break into the enemy defenses with infantry, and then bring tank units into battle. The infantry was to attack with the support of heavy tanks, assault guns, aircraft and artillery. Of the 8 mobile formations that the 9th Army had, only one was immediately introduced into battle - the 20th Panzer Division. In the zone of the main attack of the 9th Army, the 47th Panzer Corps under the command of Joachim Lemelsen was to advance. The zone of his offensive lay between the villages of Gnilets and Butyrki. Here, according to German intelligence, there was a junction of two Soviet armies - the 13th and 70th. In the first echelon of the 47th Corps, the 6th Infantry and 20th Panzer Divisions advanced, they struck on the first day. In the second echelon there were more powerful ones - the 2nd and 9th tank divisions. They should have been introduced already into the breakthrough, after breaking the Soviet defense line. In the direction of Ponyri, on the left flank of the 47th Corps, the 41st Tank Corps advanced under the command of General Josef Harpe. The 86th and 292nd Infantry Divisions were in the first echelon, and the 18th Panzer Division was in reserve. To the left of the 41st Tank Corps was the 23rd Army Corps under General Frisner. He was supposed to inflict a diversionary strike with the forces of the 78th assault and 216th infantry divisions on Maloarkhangelsk. On the right flank of the 47th Corps, the 46th Panzer Corps of General Hans Zorn advanced. In his first strike echelon there were only infantry formations - the 7th, 31st, 102nd and 258th infantry divisions. Three more mobile formations - the 10th motorized (tank-grenadier), 4th and 12th tank divisions were in the reserve of the army group. Their von Kluge was supposed to hand over to Model after the breakthrough of the shock forces into the operational space behind the defensive lines of the Central Front. It is believed that Model initially did not want to attack, but was waiting for the Red Army to advance, even prepared additional defensive lines in the rear. And he tried to keep the most valuable mobile formations in the second echelon, so that, if necessary, they could be transferred to a sector that would collapse under the blows of Soviet troops.

The command of the Army Group "South" was not limited to the attack on Kursk by the forces of the 4th Panzer Army, Colonel-General Hermann Hoth (52nd Army Corps, 48th Panzer Corps and 2nd SS Panzer Corps). In the northeast direction, the Kempf task force under the command of Werner Kempf was to advance. The group was facing east along the Seversky Donets River. Manstein believed that as soon as the battle began, the Soviet command would throw into battle strong reserves located east and northeast of Kharkov. Therefore, the strike of the 4th Panzer Army on Kursk had to be secured from the east from suitable Soviet tank and mechanized formations. Army Group "Kempf" was supposed to be one of the 42nd Army Corps (39th, 161st and 282nd Infantry Divisions) of General Franz Mattenclot to hold the line of defense on the Donets. Its 3rd Panzer Corps under the command of General of Panzer Troops Herman Bright (6th, 7th, 19th Panzer and 168th Infantry Divisions) and the 11th Army Corps of General of Panzer Troops Erhard Raus, before the start of the operation and Until July 20, it was called the Reserve of the Raus High Command for Special Purposes (106th, 198th and 320th Infantry Divisions), they were supposed to actively ensure the offensive of the 4th Panzer Army. Kempf's group was planned to subordinate another tank corps, which was in the reserve of the army group, after it had captured a sufficient area and secured freedom of action in the northeast direction.

Erich von Manstein (1887 - 1973).

The command of Army Group South was not limited to this innovation. According to the memoirs of the chief of staff of the 4th Panzer Army, General Friedrich Fangor, at a meeting with Manstein on May 10-11, the offensive plan was adjusted at the suggestion of General Hoth. According to intelligence data, a change in the location of Soviet tank and mechanized troops was observed. The Soviet tank reserve could quickly join the battle, passing into the corridor between the Donets and Psyol rivers in the Prokhorovka area. There was a danger of a strong blow to the right flank of the 4th Panzer Army. This situation could lead to disaster. Goth believed that it was necessary to bring into the oncoming battle with the Russian tank forces the most powerful formation that he had. Therefore, the 2nd SS Panzer Corps of Paul Hausser as part of the 1st SS Panzergrenadier Division "Leibstantart Adolf Hitler", the 2nd SS Panzergrenadier Division "Reich" and the 3rd SS Panzergrenadier Division "Totenkopf" (" Dead Head") should not now move directly north along the Psyol River, he should have turned northeast to the Prokhorovka area to destroy Soviet tank reserves.

The experience of the war with the Red Army convinced the German command that there would definitely be strong counterattacks. Therefore, the command of the Army Group "South" tried to minimize their consequences. Both decisions - the strike of the Kempf group and the turn of the 2nd SS Panzer Corps to Prokhorovka had a significant impact on the development of the Battle of Kursk and the actions of the Soviet 5th Guards Tank Army. At the same time, the division of the forces of Army Group South into the main and auxiliary attacks in the northeast direction deprived Manstein of serious reserves. Theoretically, Manstein had a reserve - the 24th tank corps of Walter Nering. But he was a reserve of the army group in case of an offensive by Soviet troops in the Donbass and was located quite far from the impact site on the southern face of the Kursk salient. As a result, it was used for the defense of Donbass. He did not have serious reserves that Manstein could immediately bring into battle.

The best generals and the most combat-ready units of the Wehrmacht were involved in the offensive operation, a total of 50 divisions (including 16 tank and motorized) and a significant number of individual formations. In particular, shortly before the operation, the 39th tank regiment (200 Panthers) and the 503rd battalion arrived in Army Group South. heavy tanks(45 "Tigers"). From the air, the strike groups supported the 4th Air Fleet of Field Marshal Wolfram von Richthofen and the 6th Air Fleet under the command of Colonel General Robert Ritter von Greim. In total, over 900 thousand soldiers and officers, about 10 thousand guns and mortars, more than 2700 tanks and assault guns (including 148 new heavy tanks T-VI "Tiger", 200 T-V tanks"Panther" and 90 assault guns "Ferdinand"), about 2050 aircraft.

The German command pinned great hopes on the use of new models military equipment. Waiting for the arrival of new equipment was one of the reasons why the offensive was postponed to more late time. It was assumed that heavily armored tanks ( Soviet researchers The Panther, which the Germans considered a medium tank, was classified as heavy) and self-propelled guns would become a ram for Soviet defense. The medium and heavy tanks T-IV, T-V, T-VI, Ferdinand assault guns, which entered service with the Wehrmacht, combined good armor protection and strong artillery armament. Their 75-mm and 88-mm guns with a direct range of 1.5-2.5 km were about 2.5 times the range of the 76.2-mm gun of the main Soviet medium tank T-34. At the same time, due to the high initial speed of the shells, German designers achieved high armor penetration. To combat Soviet tanks, armored self-propelled howitzers, which were part of the artillery regiments of tank divisions, were also used - 105-mm Vespe (German Wespe - “wasp”) and 150-mm Hummel (German “bumblebee”). German combat vehicles had excellent Zeiss optics. The German Air Force received new Focke-Wulf-190 fighters and Henkel-129 attack aircraft. They were supposed to gain air supremacy and carry out assault support for the advancing troops.

Self-propelled howitzers Vespe, 2nd Battalion artillery regiment"Grossdeutschland" on the march.

Attack aircraft Henschel Hs 129.

The German command tried to keep the operation secret, to achieve the surprise of the strike. To do this, they tried to misinform the Soviet leadership. They carried out intensive preparations for Operation Panther in the zone of Army Group South. They carried out demonstrative reconnaissance, deployed tanks, concentrated crossing facilities, conducted active radio communications, activated their agents, spread rumors, etc. In the offensive zone of Army Group Center, on the contrary, they tried to disguise all actions as much as possible, hide from the enemy. The measures were carried out with German thoroughness and methodicalness, but they did not give the desired results. The Soviet command was well informed about the upcoming enemy offensive.

German shielded tanks Pz.Kpfw. III in a Soviet village before the start of Operation Citadel.

In order to protect their rear from the strike of partisan formations, in May-June 1943, the German command organized and carried out several major punitive operations against Soviet partisans. In particular, 10 divisions were used against approximately 20 thousand Bryansk partisans, and 40 thousand were sent against the partisans in the Zhytomyr region. grouping. However, it was not possible to fully realize the plan, the partisans retained the ability to inflict strong blows on the invaders.

To be continued…

The Battle of Kursk in terms of its scale, military, as well as political significance, is rightfully considered one of the key battles not only of the Great Patriotic War, but also of the Second World War. The battle on the Kursk Bulge finally established the power of the Red Army and completely broke the morale of the Wehrmacht forces. After it, the German army completely lost its offensive potential.

The Battle of Kursk, or as it is also called in Russian historiography - the Battle of the Kursk Bulge - is one of the decisive battles during the Great Patriotic War, which took place in the summer of 1943 (July 5-August 23).

Historians call the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk the two most significant victories Red Army against the forces of the Wehrmacht, which completely turned the tide of hostilities.

In this article, we will learn the date of the Battle of Kursk and its role and significance during the war, as well as its causes, course and results.

The historical significance of the Battle of Kursk can hardly be overestimated. If not for the exploits Soviet soldiers during the battle, the Germans were able to seize the initiative on the Eastern Front and resume the offensive, moving again to Moscow and Leningrad. During the battle, the Red Army defeated most of the combat-ready units of the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front, and he lost the opportunity to use fresh reserves, as they were already depleted.

In honor of the victory, August 23 forever became the Day military glory Russia. In addition, the largest and bloodiest tank battle in history took place during the battles, as well as a huge amount of aircraft and other types of equipment.

The Battle of Kursk is also called the Battle of the Fiery Arc - all because of the crucial importance of this operation and the bloody battles that took hundreds of thousands of lives.

The Battle of Stalingrad, which took place earlier than the Battle of Kursk, completely destroyed the plans of the Germans regarding the rapid capture of the USSR. According to the Barbarossa plan and the blitzkrieg tactics, the Germans tried to take the USSR in one fell swoop even before winter. Now the Soviet Union gathered its strength and was able to seriously challenge the Wehrmacht.

During the Battle of Kursk on July 5-August 23, 1943, according to historians, at least 200 thousand soldiers died, more than half a million were wounded. At the same time, it is important to note that many historians consider these figures to be underestimated and the losses of the parties in the Battle of Kursk may be much more significant. Mostly foreign historians speak about the bias of these data.

Intelligence service

Played a huge role in the victory over Germany Soviet intelligence, who was able to learn about the so-called Operation Citadel. Messages about this operation Soviet intelligence officers began to receive as early as the beginning of 1943. On April 12, 1943, a document was placed on the table of the Soviet leader, which contained full information about the operation - the date of its implementation, the tactics and strategy of the German army. It was hard to imagine what would happen if intelligence did not do its job. Probably, the Germans would still have managed to break through the Russian defenses, since the preparations for Operation Citadel were serious - they were preparing for it no worse than for Operation Barbarossa.

On the this moment historians are unsure exactly who delivered this crucial knowledge to Stalin. It is believed that this information was obtained by one of the British intelligence officers John Cancross, as well as a member of the so-called "Cambridge Five" (a group of British intelligence officers that was recruited by the USSR in the early 1930s and worked for two governments at once).

There is also an opinion that the intelligence officers of the Dora group, namely the Hungarian intelligence officer Sandor Rado, transmitted information about the plans of the German command.

Some historians believe that one of the most famous intelligence officers of the Second World War period, Rudolf Ressler, who at that time was in Switzerland, transferred all the information about Operation Citadel to Moscow.

Significant support for the USSR was provided by British agents who were not recruited by the Union. During the Ultra program, British intelligence managed to hack the German Lorenz cipher machine, which transmitted messages between members of the top leadership of the Third Reich. The first step was to intercept plans for a summer offensive in the Kursk and Belgorod region, after which this information was immediately sent to Moscow.

Before the start of the Battle of Kursk, Zhukov claimed that as soon as he saw the future battlefield, he already knew how the strategic offensive of the German army would go. However, there is no confirmation of his words - it is believed that in his memoirs he simply exaggerates his strategic talent.

Thus, the Soviet Union knew about all the details of the offensive operation "Citadel" and was able to adequately prepare for it, so as not to leave the Germans a chance to win.

Preparing for battle

At the beginning of 1943, offensive actions were carried out by the German and Soviet armies, which led to the formation of a ledge in the center of the Soviet-German front, reaching a depth of 150 kilometers. This ledge was called the "Kursk Bulge". In April, it became clear to both sides that one of the key battles that could decide the outcome of the war on the Eastern Front would soon begin over this ledge.

There was no consensus in the German headquarters. For a long time, Hitler could not work out an exact strategy for the summer of 1943. Many generals, including Manstein, were opposed to the offensive at the moment. He believed that the offensive would make sense if it began right now, and not in the summer, when the Red Army could prepare for it. The rest either believed that it was time to go on the defensive, or to launch an offensive in the summer.

Despite the fact that the most experienced commander of the Reich (Manshetein) was against it, Hitler nevertheless agreed to launch an offensive in early July 1943.

The Battle of Kursk in 1943 is the Union's chance to consolidate the initiative after the victory at Stalingrad, and therefore the preparation of the operation was treated with a previously unprecedented seriousness.

The state of affairs at the headquarters of the USSR was much better. Stalin was aware of the plans of the Germans, he had a numerical advantage in infantry, tanks, guns and aircraft. Knowing how and when the Germans would advance, the Soviet soldiers prepared defensive fortifications to meet them and set up minefields to repel the attack, and then go on the counteroffensive. A huge role in the successful defense was played by the experience of Soviet military leaders, who, in two years of hostilities, were still able to work out the tactics and strategy of warfare of the best military leaders of the Reich. The fate of Operation Citadel was sealed before it even began.

Plans and forces of the parties

The German command planned to conduct a major offensive operation on the Kursk Bulge under the name (code name) "Citadel". In order to destroy the Soviet defense, the Germans decided to inflict descending strikes from the north (the region of the city of Orel) and from the south (the region of the city of Belgorod). Having broken the enemy defenses, the Germans were to unite in the area of ​​the city of Kursk, thus taking the troops of the Voronezh and Central fronts into a complete encirclement. In addition, the German tank units were supposed to turn east - to the village of Prokhorovka, and destroy the armored reserves of the Red Army so that they could not come to the aid of the main forces and help them get out of the encirclement. Such tactics were not at all new for German generals. Their tank flanking attacks worked for four. Using such tactics, they were able to conquer almost all of Europe and inflict many crushing defeats on the Red Army in 1941-1942.

To carry out Operation Citadel, the Germans concentrated 50 divisions in Eastern Ukraine, on the territory of Belarus and Russia. total strength 900 thousand people. Of these, 18 divisions were armored and motorized. Such a large number of panzer divisions was common for the Germans. Wehrmacht forces have always used lightning attacks tank units not to give the enemy even a chance to group up and fight back. In 1939, it was the tank divisions that played a key role in the capture of France, which surrendered before it could fight.

The commanders-in-chief of the Wehrmacht were Field Marshal von Kluge (Army Group Center) and Field Marshal Manstein (Army Group South). Striking Forces commanded by Field Marshal Model, the 4th Panzer Army and the Kempf task force was commanded by General Hermann Goth.

The German army before the start of the battle received the long-awaited tank reserves. Hitler sent more than 100 heavy Tiger tanks, almost 200 Panther tanks (first used at the Battle of Kursk) and less than a hundred Ferdinand or Elefant (Elephant) tank destroyers to the Eastern Front.

"Tigers", "Panthers" and "Ferdinands" - were one of the the most powerful tanks for the period of World War II. Neither the Allies nor the USSR at that time had tanks that could boast such firepower and armor. If the "Tigers" Soviet soldiers have already seen and learned to fight against them, then the "Panthers" and "Ferdinands" caused a lot of problems on the battlefield.

The Panthers are medium tanks that are slightly less armored than the Tigers and were armed with a 7.5 cm KwK 42 cannon. These guns had an excellent rate of fire and fired over long distances with great accuracy.

"Ferdinand" - heavy self-propelled anti-tank installation(PT-SAU), which was one of the most famous during the Second World War. Despite the fact that its numbers were small, it offered serious resistance to the tanks of the USSR, as it possessed at that time almost the best armor and firepower. During the Battle of Kursk, the Ferdinands showed their power, perfectly withstanding hits from anti-tank guns, and even coped with artillery hits. However, its main problem was the small number of anti-personnel machine guns, and therefore the tank destroyer was very vulnerable to infantry, which could get close to it and blow them up. It was simply impossible to destroy these tanks with head-on shots. Weak spots were on the sides, where after they learned to shoot sub-caliber shells. The weakest point in the defense of the tank is the weak chassis, which was disabled, and then the stationary tank was captured.

In total, Manstein and Kluge received less than 350 new tanks at their disposal, which was catastrophically insufficient, given the number of Soviet armored forces. It is also worth highlighting that approximately 500 tanks used during the Battle of Kursk were obsolete models. These are the Pz.II and Pz.III tanks, which were already irrelevant at that time.

During the Battle of Kursk, the 2nd Panzer Army included elite Panzerwaffe tank units, including the 1st SS Panzer Division "Adolf Hitler", the 2nd SS Panzer Division "DasReich" and the famous 3rd Panzer Division "Totenkopf" (she or "Death's Head").

The Germans had a modest number of aircraft to support infantry and tanks - about 2,500 thousand units. In terms of guns and mortars, the German army was more than twice as inferior to the Soviet one, and some sources point to a threefold advantage of the USSR in guns and mortars.

The Soviet command realized its mistakes in conducting defensive operations in 1941-1942. This time they built a powerful defensive line that could hold off the massive offensive of the German armored forces. According to the plans of the command, the Red Army was to wear down the enemy with defensive battles, and then launch a counteroffensive at the most disadvantageous moment for the enemy.

During the Battle of Kursk, the commander of the Central Front was one of the most talented and productive army generals, Konstantin Rokossovsky. His troops took on the task of defending the northern front of the Kursk salient. The commander of the Voronezh Front on the Kursk Bulge was a native Voronezh region Army General Nikolai Vatutin, on whose shoulders the task fell to defend the southern front of the ledge. Marshals of the USSR Georgy Zhukov and Alexander Vasilevsky were in charge of coordinating the actions of the Red Army.

The ratio of the number of troops was far from on the side of Germany. According to estimates, the Central and Voronezh fronts had 1.9 million soldiers, including units of the troops of the Steppe Front (Steppe Military District). The number of Wehrmacht fighters did not exceed 900 thousand people. In terms of the number of tanks, Germany was less than two times inferior to 2.5 thousand versus less than 5 thousand. As a result, the balance of power before the Battle of Kursk looked like this: 2:1 in favor of the USSR. The historian of the Great Patriotic War Alexei Isaev says that the size of the Red Army during the battle is overestimated. His point of view is subject to great criticism, since he does not take into account the troops of the Steppe Front (the number of soldiers of the Steppe Front who participated in the operations totaled more than 500 thousand people).

Kursk defensive operation

Before giving a full description of the events on the Kursk Bulge, it is important to show a map of actions in order to make it easier to navigate the information. Battle of Kursk on the map:

This picture shows the scheme of the Battle of Kursk. The map of the Battle of Kursk can clearly show how they acted combat formations during the battle. On the map of the Battle of Kursk, you will also see symbols that will help you assimilate the information.

The Soviet generals received all the necessary orders - the defense was strong and the Germans were soon waiting for resistance, which the Wehrmacht had not received in the entire history of its existence. On the day that the Battle of Kursk began, the Soviet army brought a huge amount of artillery to the front to give a response artillery barrage that the Germans would not expect.

The beginning of the Battle of Kursk (defensive stage) was planned for the morning of July 5 - the offensive was to take place immediately from the northern and southern fronts. Before the tank attack, the Germans carried out large-scale bombardments, to which the Soviet army responded in kind. At this point, the German command (namely Field Marshal Manstein) began to realize that the Russians had learned about Operation Citadel and were able to prepare the defense. Manstein repeatedly told Hitler that this offensive at the moment no longer made sense. He believed that it was necessary to carefully prepare the defense and try first to repulse the Red Army and only then think about counterattacks.

Start - Arc of Fire

On the northern front, the offensive began at six o'clock in the morning. The Germans attacked a little west of the Cherkasy direction. The first tank attacks ended in failure for the Germans. A solid defense led to heavy losses in the German armored units. And yet the enemy managed to break through 10 kilometers deep. On the southern front, the offensive began at three o'clock in the morning. The main blows fell on the settlements of Oboyan and Korochi.

The Germans could not break through the defenses of the Soviet troops, as they were carefully prepared for battle. Even the elite panzer divisions of the Wehrmacht were hardly moving forward. As soon as it became clear that the German forces could not break through on the northern and southern fronts, the command decided that it was necessary to strike in the direction of Prokhorov.

On July 11, fierce fighting began near the village of Prokhorovka, which escalated into the largest tank battle in history. Soviet tanks in the Battle of Kursk outnumbered the German ones, but despite this, the enemy resisted to the end. July 13-23 - The Germans are still trying to carry out offensive attacks, which end in failure. On July 23, the enemy completely exhausted his offensive potential and decided to go on the defensive.

tank battle

It is difficult to say how many tanks participated on both sides, since the data from various sources are different. If we take the average data, then the number of tanks of the USSR reached about 1 thousand vehicles. Whereas the Germans had about 700 tanks.

The tank battle (battle) during the defensive operation on the Kursk Bulge took place on July 12, 1943. Enemy attacks on Prokhorovka began immediately from the western and southern directions. Four panzer divisions were advancing in the west and about 300 more tanks were heading in from the south.

The battle began early in the morning and the Soviet troops gained an advantage, as rising Sun the Germans shone directly into the viewing devices of the tanks. The battle formations of the parties mixed up quite quickly, and already a few hours after the start of the battle it was difficult to make out where whose tanks were.

The Germans found themselves in a very difficult position, since the main strength of their tanks was in long-range guns, which were useless in close combat, and the tanks themselves were very slow, while in this situation much was decided by maneuverability. The 2nd and 3rd tank (anti-tank) armies of the Germans were defeated near Kursk. Russian tanks, on the other hand, gained an advantage, as they had a chance to aim vulnerabilities heavily armored German tanks, and they themselves were very maneuverable (especially the famous T-34).

However, the Germans nevertheless gave a serious rebuff from their anti-tank guns, which undermined the morale of the Russian tankers - the fire was so dense that the soldiers and tanks did not have time and could not form orders.

While the bulk of the tank troops were tied up in battle, the Germans decided to use the Kempf tank group, which was advancing on the left flank of the Soviet troops. To repel this attack, the tank reserves of the Red Army had to be used. In the southern direction, by 14.00, Soviet troops began to push the German tank units, which did not have fresh reserves. In the evening, the battlefield was already far behind the Soviet tank units and the battle was won.

Tank losses on both sides during the battle near Prokhorovka during the Kursk defensive operation looked like this:

• about 250 Soviet tanks;
• 70 German tanks.

The above figures are irretrievable losses. The number of damaged tanks was much larger. For example, the Germans after the battle of Prokhorovka had only 1/10 fully combat-ready vehicles.

The battle of Prokhorovka is called the largest tank battle in history, but this is not entirely true. In fact, this is the largest tank battle that took place in just one day. But the largest battle took place two years earlier also between the forces of the Germans and the USSR on the Eastern Front near Dubno. During this battle, which began on June 23, 1941, 4,500 tanks collided with each other. The Soviet Union had 3700 pieces of equipment, while the Germans had only 800 units.

Despite such a numerical advantage of the tank units of the Union, there was not a single chance of victory. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, the quality of the German tanks was much higher - they were armed with new models with good anti-tank armor and weapons. Secondly, in Soviet military thought at that time there was a principle that "tanks do not fight tanks." Most of the tanks in the USSR at that time had only bulletproof armor and could not penetrate the thick German armor themselves. That is why the first largest tank battle was a catastrophic failure for the USSR.

Results of the defensive phase of the battle

The defensive stage of the Battle of Kursk ended on July 23, 1943 with the complete victory of the Soviet troops and the crushing defeat of the Wehrmacht forces. As a result of bloody battles, the German army was exhausted and drained of blood, a significant number of tanks were either destroyed or partially lost their combat effectiveness. The German tanks participating in the battle near Prokhorovka were almost completely disabled, destroyed or fell into the hands of the enemy.

The ratio of losses during the defensive phase of the Battle of Kursk was as follows: 4.95:1. The Soviet army lost five times as many soldiers, while the German losses were much smaller. However, a huge number of German soldiers were wounded, as well as destroyed tank forces, which significantly undermined the combat power of the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front.

As a result of the defensive operation, the Soviet troops reached the line, which they occupied before the German offensive, which began on July 5. The Germans went on the defensive.

During the Battle of Kursk there was a radical change. After the Germans exhausted their offensive capabilities, the Red Army counteroffensive began on the Kursk Bulge. From July 17 to July 23, the Izyum-Barvenkovskaya offensive operation was carried out by Soviet troops.

The operation was carried out by the Southwestern Front of the Red Army. Its key goal was to pin down the Donbas grouping of the enemy so that the enemy could not transfer fresh reserves to the Kursk salient. Despite the fact that the enemy threw his almost best tank divisions into battle, the forces of the South-Western Front still managed to capture bridgeheads and with powerful blows pin down and surround the Donbass group of Germans. Thus, the Southwestern Front significantly helped in the defense of the Kursk Bulge.

Miusskaya offensive operation

From July 17 to August 2, 1943, the Mius offensive operation was also carried out. The main task of the Soviet troops during the operation was to pull the fresh reserves of the Germans from the Kursk Bulge to the Donbass and defeat the 6th Army of the Wehrmacht. To repel the attack in the Donbass, the Germans had to transfer significant aviation and tank units to defend the city. Despite the fact that the Soviet troops failed to break through the German defenses near the Donbass, they still managed to significantly weaken the offensive on the Kursk Bulge.

The offensive phase of the Battle of Kursk continued successfully for the Red Army. The next important battles on the Kursk Bulge took place near Orel and Kharkov - the offensive operations were called "Kutuzov" and "Rumyantsev".

The offensive operation "Kutuzov" began on July 12, 1943 in the area of ​​​​the city of Orel, where two German armies opposed the Soviet troops. As a result of bloody battles, the Germans were unable to hold bridgeheads on July 26, they retreated. Already on August 5, the city of Orel was liberated by the Red Army. It was on August 5, 1943, for the first time in the entire period of hostilities with Germany, that a small parade with fireworks took place in the capital of the USSR. Thus, it can be judged that the liberation of Orel was an extremely important task for the Red Army, which it successfully coped with.

Offensive operation "Rumyantsev"

The next main event of the Battle of Kursk during its offensive phase began on August 3, 1943 on the southern face of the arc. As already mentioned, this strategic offensive was called "Rumyantsev". The operation was carried out by the forces of the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts.

Already two days after the start of the operation - on August 5, the city of Belgorod was liberated from the Nazis. And two days later, the forces of the Red Army liberated the city of Bogodukhov. During the offensive on August 11, Soviet soldiers managed to cut the Kharkov-Poltava railway communication line of the Germans. Despite all the counterattacks of the German army, the forces of the Red Army continued to advance. As a result of fierce fighting on August 23, the city of Kharkov was recaptured.

The battle for the Kursk Bulge was already won by the Soviet troops at that moment. This was understood by the German command, but Hitler gave a clear order to "stand to the last."

The Mginskaya offensive operation began on July 22 and continued until August 22, 1943. The main goals of the USSR were as follows: to finally thwart the plan of the German offensive against Leningrad, prevent the enemy from transferring forces to the west and completely destroy the 18th Wehrmacht Army.

The operation began with a powerful artillery strike in the enemy direction. The forces of the parties at the time of the start of the operation on the Kursk Bulge looked like this: 260 thousand soldiers and about 600 tanks on the side of the USSR, and 100 thousand people and 150 tanks on the side of the Wehrmacht.

Despite strong artillery preparation, the German army put up fierce resistance. Although the forces of the Red Army managed to immediately capture the first echelon of the enemy's defense, they could not advance further.

In early August 1943, having received fresh reserves, the Red Army again began to attack German positions. Thanks to the numerical superiority and powerful mortar fire, the soldiers of the USSR managed to capture the enemy's defensive fortifications in the village of Porechie. However, the spacecraft again could not advance further - the German defense was too dense.

A fierce battle between the opposing sides during the operation unfolded for Sinyaevo and Sinyaevo Heights, which were captured by Soviet troops several times, and then they passed back to the Germans. The fighting was fierce and both sides suffered heavy losses. The German defense was so strong that the command of the spacecraft decided to stop the offensive operation on August 22, 1943 and go on the defensive. Thus, the Mginskaya offensive operation did not bring final success, although it played an important strategic role. To repel this attack, the Germans had to use the reserves, which were supposed to go to Kursk.

Smolensk offensive operation

Until the Soviet counter-offensive in the Battle of Kursk 1943 began, it was extremely important for the Headquarters to defeat as many enemy units as possible, which the Wehrmacht could send under the Course to contain the Soviet troops. In order to weaken the enemy's defenses and deprive him of the help of reserves, the Smolensk offensive operation was carried out. The Smolensk direction adjoined the western region of the Kursk salient. The operation was codenamed "Suvorov" and began on August 7, 1943. The offensive was launched by the forces of the left wing of the Kalinin Front, as well as the entire Western Front.

The operation ended in success, as in its course the beginning of the liberation of Belarus was laid. However, most importantly, the commanders of the Battle of Kursk achieved the pinning down of as many as 55 enemy divisions, preventing them from going to Kursk - this significantly increased the chances of the Red Army forces during the counteroffensive near Kursk.

To weaken the positions of the enemy near Kursk, the forces of the Red Army carried out another operation - the Donbas offensive. The plans of the parties regarding the Donbas basin were very serious, because this place served as an important economic center - the Donetsk mines were extremely important for the USSR and Germany. There was a huge German grouping in the Donbass, which numbered more than 500 thousand people.

The operation began on August 13, 1943 and was carried out by the forces of the Southwestern Front. On August 16, the Red Army forces met serious resistance on the Mius River, where there was a heavily fortified defensive line. On August 16, the forces of the Southern Front entered the battle, which managed to break through the enemy defenses. Especially in the battles, the 67th showed up from all the regiments. The successful offensive continued and already on August 30, the spacecraft liberated the city of Taganrog.

On August 23, 1943, the offensive phase of the Battle of Kursk and the Battle of Kursk itself ended, however, the Donbas offensive operation continued - the forces of the spacecraft had to push the enemy across the Dnieper River.

Now important strategic positions were lost for the Germans and the threat of dismemberment and death hung over Army Group South. To prevent this, the leader of the Third Reich nevertheless allowed her to move beyond the Dnieper.

On September 1, all German units in the area began to retreat from the Donbass. On September 5, Gorlovka was liberated, and three days later, during the fighting, Stalino was taken or, as the city is now called, Donetsk.

The retreat for the German army was very difficult. The Wehrmacht forces were running out of ammunition for artillery pieces. During the retreat, the German soldiers actively used the tactics of "scorched earth". The Germans killed civilians and burned villages as well as small towns along their path. During the Battle of Kursk in 1943, retreating in cities, the Germans plundered everything that came to hand.

On September 22, the Germans were thrown back across the Dnieper River in the area of ​​​​the cities of Zaporozhye and Dnepropetrovsk. After that, the Donbass offensive operation came to an end, ending complete success Red Army.

All the operations undertaken above led to the fact that the Wehrmacht forces, as a result of the fighting in the Battle of Kursk, were forced to withdraw beyond the Dnieper in order to build new defensive lines. The victory at the Battle of Kursk was the result of increased courage and fighting spirit Soviet soldiers, the skill of commanders and the competent use of military equipment.

The Battle of Kursk in 1943, and then the Battle of the Dnieper, finally secured the initiative on the Eastern Front for the USSR. No one else doubted that the victory in the Great Patriotic War would be for the USSR. This was understood by the allies of Germany, who began to gradually abandon the Germans, leaving the Reich even less chance.

Many historians also believe that the Allied offensive on the island of Sicily, which at that moment was occupied mainly by Italian troops, played an important role in the victory over the Germans during the Battle of Kursk.

On July 10, the Allies launched an offensive into Sicily and the Italian troops surrendered to the British and American forces with little or no resistance. This greatly spoiled Hitler's plans, since in order to hold Western Europe he had to transfer part of the troops from the Eastern Front, which again weakened the position of the Germans near Kursk. Already on July 10, Manstein told Hitler that the offensive near Kursk must be stopped and went into deep defense across the Dnieper River, but Hitler still hoped that the enemy would not be able to defeat the Wehrmacht.

Everyone knows that the Battle of Kursk during the Great Patriotic War was bloody and the date of its beginning is associated with the death of our grandfathers and great-grandfathers. However, there were also funny (interesting) facts during the Battle of Kursk. One of these cases is associated with the KV-1 tank.

During a tank battle, one of the Soviet KV-1 tanks stalled and the crew ran out of ammunition. He was opposed by two German tanks Pz.IV, which could not penetrate the armor of the KV-1. German tankers tried to get to the Soviet crew by sawing through the armor, but nothing came of it. Then two Pz.IVs decided to drag the KV-1 to their base in order to deal with the tankers there. They hitched up the KV-1 and started towing it. Somewhere halfway through, the KV-1 engine suddenly started and soviet tank dragged two Pz.IVs with him to his base. The German tankers were shocked and simply abandoned their tanks.

Results of the Battle of Kursk

If the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad ended the period of defense of the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War, then the end of the Battle of Kursk marked a radical turning point in the course of hostilities.

After a report (message) about the victory in the Battle of Kursk arrived on Stalin's desk, general secretary stated that this was only the beginning and very soon the Red Army troops would oust the Germans from the occupied territories of the USSR.

The events after the Battle of Kursk, of course, did not unfold simply for the Red Army. The victories were accompanied by huge losses, because the enemy stubbornly held the defense.

The liberation of cities after the Battle of Kursk continued, for example, already in November 1943, the capital of the Ukrainian SSR, the city of Kyiv, was liberated.

A very important result of the Battle of Kursk - change in the attitude of the allies towards the USSR. A report to the President of the United States, written in August, said that the USSR now occupies a dominant position in World War II. There is proof of this. If Germany allocated only two divisions for the defense of Sicily from the combined troops of Great Britain and the USA, then on the Eastern Front the USSR attracted the attention of two hundred German divisions.

The United States was very worried about the successes of the Russians on the Eastern Front. Roosevelt said that if the USSR continued to pursue such success, the opening of a "second front" would be unnecessary and the United States would then not be able to influence the fate of Europe without benefit to itself. Therefore, the opening of a "second front" should follow as soon as possible while US assistance was needed at all.

The failure of Operation Citadel led to the disruption of further strategic offensive operations of the Wehrmacht, which were already prepared for execution. The victory near Kursk would allow developing an offensive against Leningrad, and after that the Germans went to occupy Sweden.

The result of the Battle of Kursk was the undermining of Germany's authority among its allies. The successes of the USSR on the Eastern Front made it possible for the Americans and the British to deploy in Western Europe. After such a crushing defeat of Germany, the leader of fascist Italy, Benito Mussolini, broke off agreements with Germany and left the war. Thus, Hitler lost his true ally.

Success, of course, had to be paid dearly. The losses of the USSR in the Battle of Kursk were huge, as, indeed, were the German ones. The balance of power has already been shown above - now it's worth looking at the losses in the Battle of Kursk.

In fact, it is rather difficult to establish the exact number of deaths, since data from different sources vary greatly. Many historians take average figures - these are 200 thousand dead and three times as many wounded. The least optimistic data speaks of more than 800 thousand dead on both sides and the same number of wounded. The parties also lost a huge number of tanks and equipment. Aviation in the Battle of Kursk played almost a key role and the loss of aircraft amounted to about 4 thousand units on both sides. At the same time, aviation losses are the only ones where the Red Army lost no more than the German one - each lost about 2 thousand aircraft. For example, the ratio of human losses looks like this 5:1 or 4:1 according to different sources. Based on the characteristics of the Battle of Kursk, we can conclude that the effectiveness Soviet aircraft at this stage of the war, it was in no way inferior to the German ones, while at the beginning of hostilities the situation was radically different.

Soviet soldiers near Kursk showed extraordinary heroism. Their exploits were even celebrated abroad, especially by American and British publications. The heroism of the Red Army was also noted by the German generals, including Manshein, who was considered the best commander of the Reich. Several hundred thousand soldiers received awards "For participation in the Battle of Kursk."

Another interesting fact- children also participated in the Battle of Kursk. Of course, they did not fight on the front lines, but they provided serious support in the rear. They helped deliver supplies and shells. And before the start of the battle, hundreds of kilometers were built with the help of children railways, which were needed for the rapid transport of military and supplies.

Finally, it is important to fix all the data. Date of the end and beginning of the Battle of Kursk: July 5 and August 23, 1943.

Key dates of the Battle of Kursk:

• July 5 - 23, 1943 - Kursk strategic defensive operation;
• July 23 - August 23, 1943 - Kursk strategic offensive operation;
• July 12, 1943 - a bloody tank battle near Prokhorovka;
• July 17 - 27, 1943 - Izyum-Barvenkovskaya offensive operation;
• July 17 - August 2, 1943 - Miusskaya offensive operation;
• July 12 - August 18, 1943 - Oryol strategic offensive operation "Kutuzov";
• August 3 - 23, 1943 - Belgorod-Kharkov strategic offensive operation "Rumyantsev";
• July 22 - August 23, 1943 - Mginskaya offensive operation;
• August 7 - October 2, 1943 - Smolensk offensive operation;
• August 13 - September 22, 1943 - Donbass offensive operation.

Results of the Battle of the Fiery Arc:

• a radical turn of events during the Great Patriotic War and World War II;
• complete fiasco of the German campaign to seize the USSR;
• the Nazis lost confidence in the invincibility of the German army, which lowered the morale of the soldiers and led to conflicts in the ranks of the command.

July forty-third ... These hot days and nights of war are an integral part of history Soviet army with the Nazi invaders. The front in its configuration in the area near Kursk, the front resembled a giant arc. This segment attracted the attention of the Nazi command. The German command prepared the offensive operation as a revenge. The Nazis spent a lot of time and effort on developing the plan.

Hitler's operational order began with the words: "I decided, as soon as weather conditions permit, to launch the Citadel offensive - the first offensive this year ... It must end with a quick and decisive success." Everything was assembled by the Nazis into a powerful fist. Swift tanks "Tigers" and "Panthers" super-heavy self-propelled guns "Ferdinands", according to the plan of the Nazis, were to crush, disperse the Soviet troops, turn the tide of events.

Operation Citadel

The Battle of Kursk began on the night of July 5, when a captured German sapper said during interrogation that the German operation "Citadel" would begin at three in the morning. There were only a few minutes left before the decisive battle ... The Military Council of the front should decide major decision and it was accepted. On July 5, 1943, at two and twenty minutes, the silence exploded with the thunder of our guns ... The battle that began lasted until August 23.

As a result, the events on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War turned into the defeat of the Nazi groups. The strategy of the operation "Citadel" of the Wehrmacht on the Kursk bridgehead is crushing blows using surprise on the forces of the Soviet Army, encirclement and destruction of them. The triumph of the "Citadel" plan was to ensure the implementation of the further plans of the Wehrmacht. To disrupt the plans of the Nazis, the General Staff developed a strategy aimed at defending the battle and creating conditions for the liberation actions of the Soviet troops.

The course of the Battle of Kursk

The actions of the Army Grouping "Center" and the Operational Group "Kempf" of the armies "South", speaking from Orel and Belgorod in the battle on the Central Russian Upland, were to decide not only the fate of these cities, but also change the entire subsequent course of the war. The repulse of the strike from the side of Orel was assigned to the formations of the Central Front. The formations of the Voronezh Front were to meet the advancing detachments from Belgorod.

The steppe front, consisting of rifle, tank, mechanized and cavalry corps, was entrusted with a bridgehead in the rear of the Kursk bend. July 12, 1943, the Russian field under railway station Prokhorovka, the greatest end-to-end tank battle took place, noted by historians as unprecedented in the world, the largest end-to-end tank battle in terms of scale. Russian power on its own land withstood another test, turned the course of history to victory.

One day of the battle cost the Wehrmacht 400 tanks and nearly 10,000 casualties. Hitler's groupings were forced to go on the defensive. The battle on the Prokhorovka field was continued by units of the Bryansk, Central and Western fronts, starting the implementation of Operation Kutuzov, the task of which was to defeat the enemy groupings in the Orel region. From July 16 to July 18, the corps of the Central and Steppe Fronts liquidated the Nazi groupings in the Kursk Triangle and began to pursue it with the support of the air forces. Together, the Nazi formations were thrown back 150 km to the west. The cities of Orel, Belgorod and Kharkov were liberated.

The meaning of the Battle of Kursk

• Unprecedented strength, the most powerful tank battle in history, was the key to the development of further offensive operations in the Great Patriotic War;
• Battle of Kursk main part strategic objectives of the General Staff of the Red Army in the plans of the 1943 campaign;
• As a result of the implementation of the Kutuzov plan and the operation Commander Rumyantsev, parts of the Nazi troops were defeated in the area of ​​​​the cities of Orel, Belgorod and Kharkov. The strategic Oryol and Belgorod-Kharkov bridgeheads were liquidated;
• The end of the battle meant the complete transfer of strategic initiatives into the hands of the Soviet Army, which continued to advance to the West, liberating cities and towns.

Results of the Battle of Kursk

• The failure of the Wehrmacht operation "Citadel" presented to the world community the impotence and complete defeat of the Nazi campaign against the Soviet Union;
• fundamental change the situation on the Soviet-German front and all as a result of the "fiery" Battle of Kursk;
• The psychological breakdown of the German army was obvious, there was no longer any confidence in the superiority of the Aryan race.