Batalha De Kursk

The Battle of Kursk was the result of Hitler's final attempt to wrest the initiative from the Soviets following the disaster at Stalingrad: "Operation Citadel." The new offensive called for two converging attacks on the "Kursk Salient": in the north, the attack was to be carried out by the 9th Army (Army Group Centre), and in the south by the 4th Panzer Army and Kampfgruppe "Kempf" (Army Group South), totaling 35 divisions. These forces were to converge on Kursk, encircling four Soviet armies (the 40th, 38th, 60th, and 65th). The Soviets, however, were aware of German intentions. Command within the salient was divided between two "Fronts" (Soviet terminology uses the term "Front" rather than "Army Group"): the Central Front (48th, 13th, 70th, 65th, and 60th Armies, plus the 2nd Tank Army) and the Voronezh Front (69th, 6th Guards, 7th Guards, 38th, and 40th Armies, plus the 1st Tank Army). To the rear (in the east, off-board) lay the Steppe Front, which included the 5th Guards Tank Army and the 5th Guards Army. These forces outnumbered the Germans and were heavily entrenched. Furthermore, the Soviet air force was already beginning to gain the upper hand over the Luftwaffe. Despite these disadvantages, the Germans launched the offensive on July 5, 1943; In the North, the 9th Army was halted before reaching Olkhovatka, and in the South, the 4th Panzer Army was devastated in the massive tank battle of Prokhorovka against the 5th Guards Tank Army. On July 12, 1943, the Soviets launched a massive offensive in the North (off-board), effectively cancelling the German 9th Army's offensive. On July 17, 1943, Hitler ordered the withdrawal of the SS Panzer Corps (1st, 2nd, and 3rd SS Panzer Divisions) for deployment to Italy (the Allies had landed in Sicily on July 10, 1943). The Germans finally admitted defeat on July 23, 1943. From then on, they would experience only defensive operations, retreat, and defeat.