Every year on August 23, Russia celebrates one of the Days of Military Glory of Russia - the Day of Victory of the Russian Army over Nazi troops in the Battle of Kursk.

The Battle of Kursk ranks in the Great Patriotic War special place. It lasted 50 days and nights from July 5 to August 23, 1943. This battle has no equal in its ferocity and tenacity. More than 4 million people, 69 thousand guns and mortars, more than 13 thousand tanks, and about 12 thousand combat aircraft took part in it on both sides. The crushing defeat of Nazi troops on the Kursk Bulge and subsequent exit Soviet troops to the Dnieper completed a radical change during the Great Patriotic War.

According to Marshall Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov, the battle on the Kursk Bulge “in its scale, fierceness, transience and changeability of the combat situation, the swiftness and tenacity of the struggle, in terms of the number of people, has no equal in world history in the entire history of wars. The Battle of Kursk is undoubtedly the largest battle."

The Battle of Kursk is a radical turning point in the course of the war

In the summer of 1943, the attention of all mankind was focused on the Soviet-German front. On hot days July days one of the largest battles of the Great Patriotic War began near Kursk. The Battle of Kursk, like the battles of Moscow and Stalingrad, was distinguished by its great scope and tension.

On July 5, 1943, Nazi troops went on the offensive. The enemy rained down tens of thousands of shells and aerial bombs on the positions of our soldiers, threw a large number of tanks and infantry into the attack, trying to break through through narrow areas into the depths of our defense, towards Kursk. A fierce struggle unfolded on the ground and in the air.

The major defeats that the enemy troops suffered in two days of fighting and the low pace of the offensive forced Hitler's command shift the direction of the main attack to Ponyri. Heavy battles broke out for the second line of defense. Courage and mass heroism have become an unshakable law for our soldiers.

On July 8, the Nazi offensive in the Ponyri area was stopped. The enemy suffered heavy losses. On July 9, an enemy tank column moved towards the village of Goreloye. She walked to the line where Sapunov’s gun was stationed. HELL. Sapunov was drafted into the army in 1941, graduated from artillery school and immediately went to the front. He commanded the gun crew of the 540th light artillery regiment of the 5th division of the 13th army. July 9, 1943 was the last day of his life.

After the obvious collapse of the “Citadel” (as the offensive operation on Kursk was called), the Nazi command decided to go on the defensive on the entire Soviet-German front, ordering the troops to hold on to all occupied lines at all costs, and if the Red Army units went on the offensive, to exhaust and bleed them dry.

On the Oryol bridgehead, the enemy had a powerful group - 37 divisions, of which 8 were tank and 2 were motorized. It consisted of up to 600 thousand soldiers and officers, 6 thousand guns and mortars, about a thousand tanks and self-propelled guns, as well as over a thousand combat aircraft. Giving great importance Oryol bridgehead, the Nazis, long before their attack on Kursk, created a defense here with a developed system of field fortifications, firmly covering them with engineering barriers. The enemy prepared most of the settlements located on the front line and in the depths for all-round defense.

On August 5, the city of Orel was liberated, and by the end of August there was not a single settlement left in the region occupied by the Nazis. The Red Army launched an offensive. And on May 9, 1945, the long-awaited Victory Day over Nazi Germany arrived.

The counteroffensive of the Red Army near Kursk ended in an outstanding victory for us. Irreversible losses were inflicted on the enemy, and all his attempts to hold strategic bridgeheads in the Orel and Kharkov areas were thwarted.

The Battle of Kursk was the main event of the summer-autumn campaign of the second period of the Great Patriotic War. Of the 70 enemy divisions that took part in this battle, the Red Army defeated 30 divisions, including 7 tank divisions, and destroyed over 3,500 aircraft. Conditions were created for our troops to launch a general offensive on most of the Soviet-German front. The crushing defeat of Nazi troops on the Kursk Bulge completed a radical turning point in the course of the war. The Red Army launched an offensive. And on May 9, 1945, the long-awaited Victory Day over Nazi Germany arrived.

As a result of the battle, Soviet troops broke the backbone of the fascist German army, thwarted its attempts to take revenge for the defeat at Stalingrad and forced it to finally switch to strategic defense. The Soviet Armed Forces firmly seized the strategic initiative.

The Battle of Kursk forced the fascist German command to withdraw large formations of troops and aviation from the Mediterranean theater of operations, which allowed American-British troops to conduct an operation in Italy and ultimately predetermined the country’s exit from the war. The defeat at Kursk undermined the morale of the Nazi army and exacerbated the crisis within Hitler's aggressive bloc.

In the countries conquered by fascist troops, the national liberation movement began to develop even more.

For their courage and heroism in the Battle of Kursk, more than 100 thousand soldiers, officers and generals of the Red Army were awarded orders and medals, 180 especially distinguished soldiers were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

We cordially congratulate everyone on the holiday, Happy Victory Day in the Battle of Kursk.

Battle of Kursk (Kursk Bulge July 5 - August 23). Completion of a radical change in the Great Patriotic War. The strategic initiative finally passes into the hands of the Soviet army. In honor of the liberation of Orel and Belgorod, the first fireworks went off in Moscow.

The victory of the Red Army at Stalingrad and its subsequent general offensive in the winter of 1942/43 over a vast area from the Baltic to the Black Sea undermined Germany's military power. In order to prevent the decline in the morale of 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. With its success, they pinned their hopes on regaining the lost strategic initiative and turning the course of the war in their favor.

August 23 - Day of the defeat of the Nazi troops in the Battle of Kursk August 23, in accordance with Federal Law dated March 13, 95 No. 32-FZ “On the days of military glory (victory days) of Russia” - Day of military glory of Russia, Day of the defeat of the Nazi troops by Soviet troops troops in the Battle of Kursk (1943).

The Battle of Kursk (July 5, 1943 - August 23, 1943, also known as the Battle of Kursk, Operation Citadel in German: Unternehmen Zitadelle) in its scope, the forces and means involved, tension, results and military-political consequences, is one of the key battles of the Great Patriotic War.
The Battle of Kursk lasted forty-nine days - from July 5 to August 23, 1943. In Soviet and Russian historiography, it is customary to divide the battle into three parts: Kursk defensive operation (July 5-23); Oryol (July 12 - August 18) and Belgorod-Kharkov (August 3-23) offensive.
The general plan of the German command was to encircle and destroy the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts defending in the Kursk area. If successful, it was planned to expand the offensive front and regain the strategic initiative. To implement his plans, the enemy concentrated powerful strike forces, which numbered over 900 thousand people, about 10 thousand guns and mortars, up to 2,700 tanks and assault guns, and about 2,050 aircraft. Great hopes were placed on the latest Tiger and Panther tanks, Ferdinand assault guns, Focke-Wulf 190-A fighter planes and Heinkel 129 attack aircraft. The Soviet command decided to first bleed the enemy's strike forces in defensive battles and then launch a counteroffensive. The battle that began immediately took on a grand scale and was extremely tense. Our troops did not flinch. They faced avalanches of enemy tanks and infantry with unprecedented tenacity and courage. The advance of enemy strike forces was suspended. Only at the cost of huge losses did he manage to wedge into our defenses in some areas. On the Central Front - 10-12 km, on Voronezh - up to 35 km. Finally buried Hitler's Operation Citadel, the largest in the entire second world war oncoming tank battle near Prokhorovka. It happened on July 12. 1,200 tanks and self-propelled guns simultaneously participated in it on both sides. This battle was won by Soviet soldiers. The Nazis, having lost up to 400 tanks during the day of battle, were forced to abandon the offensive. On July 12, the second stage of the Battle of Kursk began - the counteroffensive of Soviet troops. On August 5, 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 war. From that time on, artillery salutes constantly announced the glorious victories of Soviet weapons. On August 23, Kharkov was liberated. Thus the Battle of the Kursk Arc of Fire ended victoriously. During it, 30 selected enemy divisions were defeated. Nazi troops lost about 500 thousand people, 1,500 tanks, 3 thousand guns and 3,700 aircraft. For courage and heroism, over 100 thousand Soviet soldiers who took part in the Battle of the Arc of Fire were awarded orders and medals. The Battle of Kursk ended a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War.

BATTLE OF KURSK 1943, defensive (July 5 - 23) and offensive (July 12 - August 23) operations carried out by the Red Army in the area of ​​the Kursk ledge to disrupt the offensive and defeat the strategic group of German troops.

The victory of the Red Army at Stalingrad and its subsequent general offensive in the winter of 1942/43 over a vast area from the Baltic to the Black Sea undermined Germany's military power. In order to prevent the decline in the morale of 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. With its success, they pinned their hopes on regaining the lost strategic initiative and turning the course of the war in their favor.

It was assumed that the Soviet troops would be the first to go on the offensive. However, in mid-April, the Supreme Command Headquarters revised the method of planned actions. The reason for this was Soviet intelligence data that the German command was planning to conduct a strategic offensive on the Kursk salient. The headquarters decided to wear down the enemy with a powerful defense, then go on a counter-offensive and defeat his striking forces. A rare case in the history of wars occurred when the strongest side, possessing the strategic initiative, deliberately chose to start fighting not offensively, but defensively. The development of events showed that this bold plan was absolutely justified.

FROM A. VASILEVSKY’S MEMORIES ABOUT STRATEGIC PLANNING BY THE SOVIET COMMAND OF THE BATTLE OF KURSK, April-June 1943

(...) Soviet military intelligence It was possible to timely reveal the preparation of the Nazi army for a major offensive in the area of ​​the Kursk ledge using the latest tank equipment on a massive scale, and then establish the time of the enemy’s transition to the offensive.

Naturally, in the current conditions, when it was quite obvious that the enemy would strike with large forces, it was necessary to make the most expedient decision. The Soviet command found itself faced with a difficult dilemma: to attack or defend, and if to defend, then how? (...)

Analyzing numerous intelligence data about the nature of the enemy's upcoming actions and his preparations for the offensive, the fronts, the General Staff and Headquarters were increasingly inclined to the idea of ​​​​transitioning to deliberate defense. On this issue, in particular, there was a repeated exchange of views between me and Deputy Supreme Commander-in-Chief G.K. Zhukov at the end of March - beginning of April. The most specific conversation about planning military operations for the near future took place over the phone on April 7, when I was in Moscow, at the General Staff, and G.K. Zhukov was on the Kursk salient, in the troops of the Voronezh Front. And already on April 8, signed by G.K. Zhukov, a report was sent to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief with an assessment of the situation and considerations on the plan of action in the area of ​​the Kursk ledge, which noted: “I consider it inappropriate for our troops to go on the offensive in the coming days in order to forestall the enemy. Better. It will happen if we exhaust the enemy on our defense, knock out his tanks, and then, introducing fresh reserves, by going on a general offensive we will finally finish off the main enemy grouping.”

I had to be there when he received G.K. Zhukov’s report. I remember well how the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, without expressing his opinion, said: “We must consult with the front commanders.” Having given the General Staff an order to request the opinion of the fronts and obliging them to prepare a special meeting at Headquarters to discuss the plan for the summer campaign, in particular the actions of the fronts on the Kursk Bulge, he himself called N.F. Vatutin and K.K. Rokossovsky and asked them to submit their views by April 12 according to the actions of the fronts(...)

At a meeting held on the evening of April 12 at Headquarters, which was attended by I.V. Stalin, G.K. Zhukov, who arrived from the Voronezh Front, Chief of the General Staff A.M. Vasilevsky and his deputy A.I. Antonov, a preliminary decision was made on deliberate defense (...)

After making a preliminary decision to deliberately defend and subsequently go on a counteroffensive, comprehensive and thorough preparations for the upcoming actions began. At the same time, reconnaissance of enemy actions continued. The Soviet command became aware of the exact timing of the start of the enemy offensive, which was postponed three times by Hitler. At the end of May - beginning of June 1943, when the enemy’s plan to launch a strong tank attack on the Voronezh and Central fronts using large groups equipped with new military equipment for this purpose was clearly emerging, the final decision was made on a deliberate defense.

Speaking about the plan for the Battle of Kursk, I would like to emphasize two points. Firstly, that this plan is the central part of the strategic plan for the entire summer-autumn campaign of 1943 and, secondly, that the decisive role in the development of this plan was played by the highest bodies of strategic leadership, and not by other command authorities (...)

Vasilevsky A.M. Strategic planning Battle of Kursk. Battle of Kursk. M.: Nauka, 1970. P.66-83.

By the beginning of the Battle of Kursk, the Central and Voronezh Fronts had 1,336 thousand people, more than 19 thousand guns and mortars, 3,444 tanks and self-propelled guns, 2,172 aircraft. In the rear of the Kursk salient, the Steppe Military District was deployed (from July 9 - the Steppe Front), which was the reserve of Headquarters. He had to prevent a deep breakthrough from both Orel and Belgorod, and when going on a counteroffensive, increase the force of the strike from the depths.

The German side included 50 divisions, including 16 tank and motorized divisions, into two strike groups intended for an offensive on the northern and southern fronts of the Kursk ledge, which amounted to about 70% tank divisions Wehrmacht on the Soviet-German front. In total - 900 thousand people, about 10 thousand guns and mortars, up to 2,700 tanks and assault guns, about 2,050 aircraft. An important place in the enemy’s plans was given to the massive use of new military equipment: Tiger and Panther tanks, Ferdinand assault guns, as well as new Foke-Wulf-190A and Henschel-129 aircraft.

ADDRESS BY THE FÜHRER TO THE GERMAN SOLDIERS ON THE EVE OF OPERATION CITADEL, no later than July 4, 1943.

Today you are beginning a great offensive battle that may have a decisive influence on the outcome of the war as a whole.

With your victory, the conviction of the futility of any resistance to the German armed forces will become stronger than before. In addition, the new brutal defeat of the Russians will further shake the faith in the possibility of success of Bolshevism, which has already been shaken in many formations of the Soviet Armed Forces. Just like in the last big war, their faith in victory, no matter what, will disappear.

The Russians achieved this or that success primarily with the help of their tanks.

My soldiers! Now you finally have better tanks than the Russians.

Their seemingly inexhaustible masses of people have become so thin in the two-year struggle that they are forced to call on the youngest and the oldest. Our infantry, as always, is as superior to the Russian as our artillery, our tank destroyers, our tank crews, our sappers and, of course, our aviation.

A mighty blow that will strike this morning soviet armies, must shake them to the ground.

And you should know that everything may depend on the outcome of this battle.

As a soldier, I clearly understand what I demand from you. Ultimately, we will achieve victory, no matter how cruel and difficult any particular battle may be.

German homeland - your wives, daughters and sons, selflessly united, meet enemy air strikes and at the same time work tirelessly in the name of victory; they look with ardent hope at you, my soldiers.

ADOLF GITLER

This order is subject to destruction at division headquarters.

Klink E. Das Gesetz des Handelns: Die Operation “Zitadelle”. Stuttgart, 1966.

PROGRESS OF THE BATTLE. THE EVE

Since the end of March 1943, the Headquarters of the Soviet Supreme High Command had been working on a plan for a strategic offensive, the task of which was to defeat the main forces of Army Group South and Center and crush enemy defenses on the front from Smolensk to the Black Sea. However, in mid-April, based on army intelligence data, it became clear to the leadership of the Red Army that the Wehrmacht command itself was planning to carry out an attack under the base of the Kursk ledge, in order to encircle our troops located there.

Concept offensive operation near Kursk arose at Hitler's headquarters immediately after the end of the fighting near Kharkov in 1943. The very configuration of the front in this area pushed the Fuhrer to strike in converging directions. In the circles of the German command there were also opponents to such a decision, in particular Guderian, who, being responsible for the production of new tanks for the German army, was of the opinion that they should not be used as the main striking force in a major battle - this could lead to a waste of forces . The Wehrmacht strategy for the summer of 1943, according to generals such as Guderian, Manstein, and a number of others, was to become exclusively defensive, as economical as possible in terms of expenditure of forces and resources.

However, the bulk of German military leaders actively supported offensive plans. The date of the operation, codenamed "Citadel", was set for July 5, and German troops received at their disposal big number new tanks (T-VI "Tiger", T-V "Panther"). These armored vehicles were superior in firepower and armor resistance to the main Soviet T-34 tank. By the beginning of Operation Citadel, the German forces of Army Groups Center and South had at their disposal up to 130 Tigers and more than 200 Panthers. In addition, the Germans significantly improved the combat qualities of their old T-III and T-IV tanks, equipping them with additional armored screens and installing an 88-mm cannon on many vehicles. In total, the Wehrmacht strike forces in the area of ​​the Kursk salient at the beginning of the offensive included about 900 thousand people, 2.7 thousand tanks and assault guns, up to 10 thousand guns and mortars. The strike forces of Army Group South under the command of Manstein, which included General Hoth's 4th Panzer Army and the Kempf group, were concentrated on the southern wing of the ledge. The troops of von Kluge's Army Group Center operated on the northern wing; the core of the strike group here was the forces of the 9th Army of General Model. The southern German group was stronger than the northern one. Generals Hoth and Kemph had approximately twice as many tanks as Model.

The Supreme Command headquarters decided not to go first on the offensive, but to take a tough defense. The idea of ​​the Soviet command was to first bleed the enemy’s forces, knock out his new tanks, and only then, bringing fresh reserves into action, go on a counteroffensive. I must say that this was a rather risky plan. Supreme Commander-in-Chief Stalin, his deputy Marshal Zhukov, and other representatives of the high Soviet command remembered well that not once since the beginning of the war had the Red Army been able to organize defense in such a way that the pre-prepared German offensive fizzled out at the stage of breaking through Soviet positions (at the beginning of the war near Bialystok and Minsk, then in October 1941 near Vyazma, in the summer of 1942 in the Stalingrad direction).

However, Stalin agreed with the opinion of the generals, who advised not to rush into launching an offensive. A deeply layered defense was built near Kursk, which had several lines. It was specially created as an anti-tank weapon. In addition, in the rear of the Central and Voronezh fronts, which occupied positions respectively in the northern and southern sections of the Kursk ledge, another one was created - the Steppe Front, designed to become a reserve formation and enter the battle at the moment the Red Army went on a counteroffensive.

The country's military factories worked uninterruptedly to produce tanks and self-propelled guns. The troops received both traditional “thirty-fours” and powerful SU-152 self-propelled guns. The latter could already fight with great success against the Tigers and Panthers.

The organization of Soviet defense near Kursk was based on the idea of ​​deep echeloning of combat formations of troops and defensive positions. On the Central and Voronezh fronts, 5-6 defensive lines were erected. Along with this, a defensive line was created for the troops of the Steppe Military District, and along the left bank of the river. The Don has prepared a state line of defense. The total depth of the area's engineering equipment reached 250-300 km.

In total, by the beginning of the Battle of Kursk, Soviet troops significantly outnumbered the enemy both in men and equipment. The Central and Voronezh Fronts had about 1.3 million people, and the Steppe Front standing behind them had an additional 500 thousand people. All three fronts had at their disposal up to 5 thousand tanks and self-propelled guns, 28 thousand guns and mortars. The advantage in aviation was also on the Soviet side - 2.6 thousand for us versus about 2 thousand for the Germans.

PROGRESS OF THE BATTLE. DEFENSE

The closer the start date for Operation Citadel approached, the more difficult it was to hide its preparations. Already a few days before the start of the offensive, the Soviet command received a signal that it would begin on July 5th. From intelligence reports it became known that the enemy attack was scheduled for 3 o'clock. The headquarters of the Central (commander K. Rokossovsky) and Voronezh (commander N. Vatutin) fronts decided to carry out artillery counter-preparation on the night of July 5. It started at 1 o'clock. 10 min. After the roar of the cannonade died down, the Germans could not come to their senses for a long time. As a result of artillery counter-preparation carried out in advance in areas where enemy strike forces were concentrated, German troops suffered losses and began the offensive 2.5-3 hours later than planned. Only after some time were German troops able to begin their own artillery and aviation training. The attack by German tanks and infantry formations began at about half past six in the morning.

The German command pursued the goal of breaking through the defenses of the Soviet troops with a ramming attack and reaching Kursk. In the Central Front, the main enemy attack was taken by the troops of the 13th Army. On the very first day, the Germans brought up to 500 tanks into battle here. On the second day, the command of the Central Front troops launched a counterattack against the advancing group with part of the forces of the 13th and 2nd Tank Armies and the 19th Tank Corps. The German offensive here was delayed, and on July 10 it was finally thwarted. In six days of fighting, the enemy penetrated the defenses of the Central Front only 10-12 km.

The first surprise for the German command on both the southern and northern flanks of the Kursk salient was that the Soviet soldiers were not afraid of the appearance of new German Tiger and Panther tanks on the battlefield. Moreover, Soviet anti-tank artillery and the guns of tanks buried in the ground opened effective fire on German armored vehicles. And yet, the thick armor of German tanks allowed them to break through the Soviet defenses in some areas and penetrate the battle formations of the Red Army units. However, there was no quick breakthrough. Having overcome the first defensive line, German tank units were forced to turn to sappers for help: the entire space between the positions was densely mined, and the passages in the minefields were well covered by artillery. While the German tank crews were waiting for the sappers, they combat vehicles were subjected to massive fire. Soviet aviation managed to maintain air supremacy. More and more often, Soviet attack aircraft - the famous Il-2 - appeared over the battlefield.

On the first day of fighting alone, Model’s group, operating on the northern flank of the Kursk bulge, lost up to 2/3 of the 300 tanks that took part in the first strike. Soviet losses were also high: only two companies of German Tigers, advancing against the forces of the Central Front, destroyed 111 T-34 tanks during the period July 5-6. By July 7, the Germans, having advanced several kilometers forward, approached the large settlement of Ponyri, where a powerful battle ensued between the shock units of the 20th, 2nd and 9th German tank divisions with formations of the Soviet 2nd tank and 13th armies. The outcome of this battle was extremely unexpected for the German command. Having lost up to 50 thousand people and about 400 tanks, the northern strike group was forced to stop. Having advanced only 10 - 15 km, Model eventually lost the striking power of his tank units and lost the opportunity to continue the offensive.

Meanwhile, on the southern flank of the Kursk salient, events developed according to a different scenario. By July 8, the shock units of the German motorized formations “Grossdeutschland”, “Reich”, “Totenkopf”, Leibstandarte “Adolf Hitler”, several tank divisions of the 4th Panzer Army Hoth and the “Kempf” group managed to wedge into the Soviet defense up to 20 and more than km. The offensive initially went in the direction of the settlement of Oboyan, but then, due to strong opposition from the Soviet 1st Tank Army, 6th Guards Army and other formations in this sector, the commander of Army Group South von Manstein decided to strike further east - in the direction of Prokhorovka . It was near this settlement that the largest tank battle of the Second World War began, in which up to TWO HUNDRED TANKS and self-propelled guns took part on both sides.

The Battle of Prokhorovka is largely a collective concept. The fate of the warring parties was not decided in one day and not on one field. The theater of operations for Soviet and German tank formations represented an area of ​​more than 100 square meters. km. And yet, it was this battle that largely determined the entire subsequent course of not only the Battle of Kursk, but also the entire summer campaign on the Eastern Front.

On June 9, the Soviet command decided to transfer from the Steppe Front to the aid of the troops of the Voronezh Front the 5th Guards Tank Army of General P. Rotmistrov, who was tasked with launching a counterattack on the wedged enemy tank units and forcing them to retreat to their original positions. It was emphasized that the need to try to enter into German tanks into close combat to limit their advantages in armor resistance and firepower of turret guns.

Concentrating in the Prokhorovka area, on the morning of July 10, Soviet tanks launched an attack. In quantitative terms, they outnumbered the enemy in a ratio of approximately 3:2, but the combat qualities of the German tanks allowed them to destroy many “thirty-fours” while approaching their positions. The fighting continued here from morning until evening. The Soviet tanks that broke through met the German tanks almost armor to armor. But this is precisely what the command of the 5th Guards Army sought. Moreover, soon the enemy battle formations were so mixed up that the “tigers” and “panthers” began to expose their side armor, which was not as strong as the frontal armor, to the fire of Soviet guns. When the battle finally began to subside towards the end of July 13, it was time to count the losses. And they were truly gigantic. The 5th Guards Tank Army has practically lost its combat striking power. But German losses did not allow them to further develop the offensive in the Prokhorovsk direction: the Germans only had up to 250 serviceable combat vehicles left in service.

The Soviet command hastily transferred new forces to Prokhorovka. The battles that continued in this area on July 13 and 14 did not lead to a decisive victory for one side or the other. However, the enemy began to gradually run out of steam. The Germans had the 24th Tank Corps in reserve, but sending it into battle meant losing their last reserve. The potential of the Soviet side was immeasurably greater. On July 15, the Headquarters decided to introduce the forces of the Steppe Front of General I. Konev - the 27th and 53rd armies, with the support of the 4th Guards Tank and 1st Mechanized Corps - on the southern wing of the Kursk salient. Soviet tanks were hastily concentrated northeast of Prokhorovka and received orders on July 17 to go on the offensive. But the Soviet tank crews no longer had to participate in the new oncoming battle. German units began to gradually retreat from Prokhorovka to their original positions. What's the matter?

Back on July 13, Hitler invited Field Marshals von Manstein and von Kluge to his headquarters for a meeting. That day, he ordered Operation Citadel to continue and not reduce the intensity of the fighting. Success at Kursk, it seemed, was just around the corner. However, just two days later, Hitler suffered a new disappointment. His plans were falling apart. On July 12, the Bryansk troops went on the offensive, and then, from July 15, the Central and left wing of the Western Fronts in the general direction of Orel (Operation ""). The German defense here could not stand it and began to crack at the seams. Moreover, some territorial gains on the southern flank of the Kursk salient were nullified after the battle of Prokhorovka.

At a meeting at the Fuhrer's headquarters on July 13, Manstein tried to convince Hitler not to interrupt Operation Citadel. The Fuhrer did not object to continuing attacks on the southern flank of the Kursk salient (although this was no longer possible on the northern flank of the salient). But the new efforts of the Manstein group did not lead to decisive success. As a result, on July 17, 1943, the command of the German ground forces ordered the withdrawal of the 2nd SS Panzer Corps from Army Group South. Manstein had no choice but to retreat.

PROGRESS OF THE BATTLE. OFFENSIVE

In mid-July 1943, the second phase of the gigantic battle of Kursk began. On July 12-15, the Bryansk, Central and Western fronts went on the offensive, and on August 3, after the troops of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts pushed the enemy back to their original positions on the southern wing of the Kursk ledge, they began the Belgorod-Kharkov offensive operation (Operation Rumyantsev "). The fighting in all areas continued to be extremely complex and fierce. The situation was further complicated by the fact that in the offensive zone of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts (in the south), as well as in the zone of the Central Front (in the north), the main blows of our troops were delivered not against the weak, but against the strong sector of the enemy defense. This decision was made in order to reduce the preparation time for offensive actions as much as possible, and to take the enemy by surprise, that is, precisely at the moment when he was already exhausted, but had not yet taken up a strong defense. The breakthrough was carried out by powerful strike groups on narrow sections of the front using a large number of tanks, artillery and aircraft.

Courage Soviet soldiers, the increased skill of their commanders, and the competent use of military equipment in battles could not but lead to positive results. Already on August 5, 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 formations of the Red Army that won such a brilliant victory. By August 23, Red Army units had pushed the enemy back 140-150 km to the west and liberated Kharkov for the second time.

The Wehrmacht lost 30 selected divisions in the Battle of Kursk, including 7 tank divisions; about 500 thousand soldiers killed, wounded and missing; 1.5 thousand tanks; more than 3 thousand aircraft; 3 thousand guns. The losses of Soviet troops were even greater: 860 thousand people; over 6 thousand tanks and self-propelled guns; 5 thousand guns and mortars, 1.5 thousand aircraft. Nevertheless, the balance of forces at the front changed in favor of the Red Army. It had at its disposal an incomparably larger number of fresh reserves than the Wehrmacht.

The Red Army's offensive, after bringing new formations into battle, continued to increase its pace. In the central sector of the front, troops of the Western and Kalinin fronts began to advance towards Smolensk. This ancient Russian city, considered since the 17th century. gate to Moscow, was released on September 25. On the southern wing of the Soviet-German front, units of the Red Army in October 1943 reached the Dnieper in the Kyiv area. Having immediately captured several bridgeheads on the right bank of the river, Soviet troops carried out an operation to liberate the capital Soviet Ukraine. On November 6, a red flag flew over Kiev.

It would be wrong to say that after the victory of the Soviet troops in the Battle of Kursk, the further offensive of the Red Army developed unhindered. Everything was much more complicated. Thus, after the liberation of Kyiv, the enemy managed to deliver a powerful counterattack in the area of ​​Fastov and Zhitomir against the advanced formations of the 1st Ukrainian Front and inflict considerable damage on us, stopping the advance of the Red Army on the territory of right-bank Ukraine. The situation in Eastern Belarus was even more tense. After the liberation of the Smolensk and Bryansk regions, Soviet troops reached areas east of Vitebsk, Orsha and Mogilev by November 1943. However, the subsequent attacks of the Western and Bryansk Fronts against the German Army Group Center, which had taken up a tough defense, did not lead to any significant results. Time was needed to concentrate additional forces in the Minsk direction, to give rest to the formations exhausted in previous battles and, most importantly, to develop a detailed plan for a new operation to liberate Belarus. All this happened already in the summer of 1944.

And in 1943, victories at Kursk and then in the Battle of the Dnieper completed a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War. The Wehrmacht's offensive strategy suffered a final collapse. By the end of 1943, 37 countries were at war with the Axis powers. The collapse of the fascist bloc began. Among the notable acts of that time was the establishment in 1943 of military and military awards - the Orders of Glory I, II, and III degree and the Order of Victory, as well as as a sign of the liberation of Ukraine - the Order of Bohdan Khmelnitsky 1st, 2nd and 3rd degrees. A long and bloody struggle still lay ahead, but a radical change had already occurred.

There are two of them left. Those who saw how Komarin was liberated from the Nazis 75 years ago.

In the Bragin Historical Museum there is a painting by Vasily Shevchenko “Forcing the Dnieper”. Photo: Sergey Emelyanov

Witnesses

Ekaterina Ivanovna Petrusevich was 13 years old at that time. Children's memory stores the worst things:

A policeman came and said: “Get your bast shoes and bag ready, tomorrow the whole family will go dig a ditch.” Grandfather took a barrel of honey, lard, moonshine - and negotiated with the police. I agreed, and the whole family went to the forest. And those who went to bury themselves were buried alive.

Olga Iosifovna Kopytko is five years older:

I just finished school, I wanted to medical School act as the war began. The Germans committed atrocities: as soon as they did, they immediately gathered people for a meeting, and then shot them. Therefore, for the most part we hung around in forests and swamps. Once I crawled away from such a meeting for two hours through a rye field. She hugged the earth tightly so that no one would notice. And when our people arrived, we all came out of the forests, rejoiced and kissed, as if the war was over. It was already possible to exist in this world without being afraid of anyone.

- And you are 18 years old...

I was immediately called to the medical battalion. And I, together with our liberators - the 181st Rifle Division of the First Ukrainian Front - went on to liberate Belarus. Then Poland, Czechoslovakia, Germany found themselves surrounded with their medical battalions. She served until the Victory. I have several thanks from Stalin.

Bloody crossing

The Battle of the Dnieper is one of the bloodiest in the Great Patriotic War. Retreating on all fronts from Velikiye Luki to the Black Sea, the Nazis hurried to retreat behind the “impregnable Eastern Wall” - as they called the well-fortified, deeply echeloned water lines on the western bank of the Dnieper.

On September 22, 1943, the first to enter the water, pursuing the enemy, were the troops of the 13th Army under the command of Lieutenant General N.P. Pukhov. They were supported by formations of the 60th and 61st armies. The liberation of Belarus from the fascist invaders began.

It is difficult for us today to imagine what was happening on the Dnieper in those days. Apocalypse! The writer Viktor Astafiev, who also crossed the river, testified: “When 25 thousand soldiers entered the Dnieper on one side, no more than 5-6 thousand came out on the opposite side.”

You read the memoirs of front-line soldiers, and your blood runs cold. Ivan Vasilyevich Kovalev was then a sergeant, commander of a mortar crew of the 81st Infantry Division:

“As soon as we launched the boats, a massive artillery shelling began, then German planes appeared in the sky. Of the six boats, only three crossed. Two were almost immediately completely destroyed by a direct hit, the third boat did not reach the shore 15-20 meters, the shell hit near her, and she capsized. The shore and waters of the Dnieper were red with blood. The worst thing was that there was nowhere to hide from the incessant explosions. Complete helplessness: you look to the right - the boat sank, to the left - the raft was blown apart, fear literally paralyzes you.

At the moment of crossing, we clearly realized: our life is only in the hands of fortune. To be honest, I don’t understand how I stayed alive. Those who crossed the river desperately jumped ashore and tried to bury themselves as deep into the ground as possible."

But there weren’t enough boats for everyone, so they crossed on rafts made of logs and planks, on ferries built from empty iron barrels, and on raincoat tents stuffed with hay and straw.

The crossing of the Dnieper took place simultaneously in many areas from Loev to Zaporozhye. Local historian Ruslan Gerasimov from the regional center of Bragin says:

After the crossing, hell continued. In our area, the village of Galki, for example, changed hands 12 times in one night. And Komarin was the first to be liberated from the Germans.

Six stars

Despite her 93 years, Olga Iosifovna Kopytko is surprisingly active. Together with a friend, she takes care of the orchard and cherishes the grapes hanging from the trellises by the porch. She herself volunteered to show us the military monuments of Komarin.

We drive through a clean, well-kept village. Lenin Street, Sovetskaya Street, Karl Marx Street, Proletarskaya... It’s as if we are returning to life from childhood - non-fuss, sunny...

Now Komarin is like a resort town, but after liberation there was real horror,” the front-line soldier recalls. “All the houses are destroyed, equipment is on fire, there are corpses all around and this unforgettable roar. The front, having crossed the Dnieper, advanced far beyond Komarin, but the roar remained.

We stop at a mass grave in the center of the village. Endless slabs with the names of the buried. 799 of our soldiers died during the liberation of Komarin and nearby villages. Six Heroes of the Soviet Union also lie here.

The youngest - 19-year-old junior sergeant Nikolai Yakovlev from the Vologda region - died while covering the infantry with machine gun fire near the very village of Galki. Destroyed about a hundred Nazis.

Orenburg lieutenant Dmitry Grechushkin commanded a platoon of anti-tank rifles. After the tank attack, the entire platoon was killed, and the commander hid, waited until the Tiger exposed itself with a weak point and knocked it out. He himself was immediately attacked by a self-propelled gun and died.

The lieutenant's fellow countryman, senior sergeant Vasily Boyarkin, with his machine-gun crew, distinguished himself during the crossing of the Dnieper, covering his comrades, in a battle near the village of Vyalye, where his crew killed 60 Nazis, but an accidental bullet ended the hero's life.

Lieutenant from Ukraine Fyodor Pavlovsky - Komsomol organizer of a rifle battalion. He died during the battle, killing 65 fascists.

Senior sergeant Nikolai Grishchenko from Sakhalin was the commander of the mortar company crew. When the danger of encirclement arose, the already wounded man raised the soldiers in a counterattack and threw grenades at the enemy armored vehicle. He had no chance to survive.

Thirty-year-old sergeant major Oraz Anaev from Turkmenistan also blew up an armored vehicle with seven fascists and two heavy machine guns. A street in Minsk is named after him...

In the Bragin Historical Museum on a stand are the names of 396 soldiers who received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for their exploits during the liberation of the Bragin region. And this is just one region of Belarus, where the fighting lasted for just over a month!

Peaceful Komarin

Every year the number of dead soldiers in our mass grave grows,” says the head of the Komarinsk village administration, Viktor Svislovsky. - We are gradually moving here the graves from the nearest villages, which were empty after Chernobyl accident. We often find remains during excavation work or natural collapse of the banks of the Dnieper. In May we have very touching memorial events. Last year, a grandson from Uzbekistan found his grandfather here.

- How does Komarin live these days?

The village has 2,428 residents, and the school has 310 students. State farm "Komarinsky", forestry, forestry, reclamation service... There are about twenty streets alone. Two of them bear the names of the heroes Pavlovsky and Grechushkin. Now, as part of the “Small Motherland” program, we have been allocated serious money for improvement. It’s a pity that you didn’t come in July - there’s such swimming on the Dnieper on Ivan Kupala! There were about five thousand people this year - from everywhere, including from Russia. Songs, bonfires, fireworks! Thank God there is peace now.

- You probably have a lot of mosquitoes, too?

Are you referring to the name of the village? Previously, everything around was in swamps, but then there was a lot. And then the swamps were drained. But I don’t know whether the name comes from mosquitoes. The village is 633 years old!

The editors would like to thank S.A. for his help in preparing the material. Dovgulyavets - head of the department of ideological work, culture and youth affairs and N.I. Meleshko - director of the Braginsky State Institution historical Museum with an art gallery."

"I don't have the means to cross..."

From the memoirs of the former commander of the 360th Infantry Regiment, Hero of the Soviet Union, Major General N. Stashek, honorary citizen of Komarin:

On a dark night, I was called to the auxiliary command post of the army and personally from the army commander, General N.P. Pukhov. received the task: “Within one and a half to two hours, cross the Desna and, without getting involved in battle with the enemy, quickly reach the Dnieper by dawn, cross it in the Komarin area and hold the captured bridgehead until the main forces arrive.” “The task is clear,” I answered, “there is only one question: where to get the transportation means?”

The army commander became gloomy. Apparently, he was expecting such a question and therefore answered without hesitation: “Look for means of crossing by the river, I don’t have them.”

<...>Unfortunately, we were unable to overcome the distance of more than 50 km before dawn. By this time, only the vanguard battalion under the command of the deputy regiment commander, Lieutenant Colonel Nikolai Mikhailovich Novikov, had reached the Dnieper. The enemy met the battalion with artillery, mortar and machine gun fire. But despite this, the battalion began constructing rafts from scrap materials and fishing boats.

The exit of the main forces of the regiment to the river was completely unexpected for the enemy. There was confusion in its ranks. Taking advantage of this, the main forces of the regiment crossed the river using improvised means three to four kilometers south of the vanguard battalion. The main enemy forces were destroyed by a united surprise attack, and by nightfall the regional center of Komarin was captured.

<...>Soon the enemy came to his senses and began to launch a counterattack. But the regiment did not just defend itself, but attacked several times every day, although ammunition reserves were decreasing every hour...

During the next counterattack, the enemy managed to reach the rear of the second battalion in the area where the medical post was located. The Nazis rushed into a furious attack, anticipating an easy victory. Noticing the approach of the Nazis, the commander of the sanitary platoon, Jr. Lieutenant of the medical service Ivan Danilovich Fionov gave the command “to the gun.” The wounded, even those who could not move, but could hold a weapon with at least one hand, took up a perimeter defense and met the enemy with organized rifle and machine-gun fire... When the ammunition was running out, Comrade Fionov raised the soldiers to attack. It was so unexpected for the enemy that he was taken aback, the Nazis were confused and began to retreat. The wounded made their way and retreated to the rear. Comrade Fionov himself was seriously wounded in the stomach, but controlled the battle until the last minute.

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 ferocity and tenacity of struggle.

The general plan of the German command was to encircle and destroy the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts defending in the Kursk area. If successful, it was planned to expand the offensive front and regain the strategic initiative. To implement his plans, the enemy concentrated powerful strike forces, which numbered over 900 thousand people, about 10 thousand guns and mortars, up to 2,700 tanks and assault guns, and about 2,050 aircraft. Great hopes were placed on the latest Tiger and Panther tanks, Ferdinand assault guns, Focke-Wulf 190-A fighter planes and Heinkel 129 attack aircraft.

The Soviet command decided to first bleed the enemy's strike forces in defensive battles and then launch a counteroffensive. The battle that began immediately took on a grand scale and was extremely tense. Our troops did not flinch. They faced avalanches of enemy tanks and infantry with unprecedented tenacity and courage. The advance of enemy strike forces was suspended. Only at the cost of huge losses did he manage to wedge into our defenses in some areas. On the Central Front - 10-12 km, on Voronezh - up to 35 km. Hitler's Operation Citadel was finally buried by the largest oncoming tank battle of the entire Second World War near Pro-Khorovka. It happened on July 12. 1,200 tanks and self-propelled guns simultaneously participated in it on both sides. This battle was won by Soviet soldiers. The Nazis, having lost up to 400 tanks during the day of battle, were forced to abandon the offensive.

On July 12, the second stage of the Battle of Kursk began - the counteroffensive of Soviet troops. On August 5, 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 war. From that time on, artillery salutes constantly announced the glorious victories of the Soviet Union. On August 23, Kharkov was liberated. Thus the Battle of the Kursk Arc of Fire ended victoriously. During it, 30 selected enemy divisions were defeated. Nazi troops lost about 500 thousand people, 1,500 tanks, 3 thousand guns and 3,700 aircraft. For courage and heroism, over 100 thousand Soviet soldiers who took part in the Battle of the Arc of Fire were awarded orders and medals. The Battle of Kursk ended a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War.

Tanks. Battle of Kursk

The Battle of Kursk, or Operation Citadel, became a turning point and 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 ferocity and tenacity of struggle. The battle, which took place more than sixty years ago, still attracts attention as the largest clash of tank armadas in the entire war. The defeat of Hitler's troops on the Kursk Bulge and the subsequent withdrawal of Soviet troops to the Dnieper completed a radical turning point in the course of the Great Patriotic War.