The Battle of Kursk in 1943 lasted from July 5 to August 23, involving more than 2.1 million people, more than 6,200 tanks and 4,600 aircraft. It took place on the territory of the Kursk, Oryol, Belgorod, and Kharkov regions and ended with the collapse of the German group.
The Red Army’s victory at Stalingrad and its subsequent general offensive in the winter of 1942/1943 across a vast area from the Baltic to the Black Sea undermined Germany’s military might. To stem the decline in morale among the army and the population and the growth of centrifugal tendencies within the aggressor bloc, Hitler and his generals decided to prepare and conduct a major offensive operation on the Soviet-German front. Their hopes for regaining the lost strategic initiative and turning the tide of the war in their favor were pinned on its success.
The date for the German operation, codenamed “Citadel,” was set for July 5. The configuration of the front in this area encouraged the Germans to attack in converging directions.
The Soviet command headquarters decided to wear down the enemy with a powerful defense, then launch a counteroffensive and destroy its strike forces. This was a rare instance in the history of warfare: the stronger side, holding the strategic initiative, deliberately chose to begin military operations on the defensive rather than on the offensive. Events proved that this bold plan was entirely justified.
By the start of the Battle of Kursk, Soviet forces significantly outnumbered the enemy in both personnel and equipment. The Central and Voronezh Fronts had approximately 1.3 million men, and the Steppe Front, behind them, had an additional 500,000. All three fronts had up to 5,000 tanks and self-propelled guns, 28,000 artillery pieces, and mortars. The Soviets also had an advantage in air power—2,600 to the Germans’ approximately 2,000.
The courage of Soviet soldiers, the increased skill of their commanders, and the skillful use of military equipment in battle could not help but lead to positive results. Soviet troops liberated Orel and Belgorod. On this day, for the first time since the beginning of the war, an artillery salute was fired in Moscow in honor of the valiant Red Army units. By August 23, its units had pushed the enemy westward 140–150 km and liberated Kharkov.
The Wehrmacht’s offensive strategy had collapsed completely. General Guderian claimed that “the initiative had completely passed to the Russians.” And Field Marshal Manstein acknowledged that the failure of Operation Citadel marked “a turning point in the war on the Eastern Front.”
The disintegration of the fascist bloc began. Hitler’s main ally in Europe, Italy, left the war on Germany’s side after the Battle of Kursk.
And US President Franklin Roosevelt stated that it was necessary to open a second front in Europe as soon as possible.