Citadel Of Mangup's buildings, the citadel has been preserved more completely than others. It consists of a defensive wall, as if cutting off the Leaky Cape from the floor side, a gate covered with a box vault, and a two-story donjon located in the middle of the wall. When was the first time

Operation Citadel There was a pause in combat operations due to the spring thaw. As the year before, both sides used it to refine their plans. The Soviet command intended to resume the offensive, which was so abruptly interrupted, as before

German code name for the Battle of Kursk in the summer of 1943. By this time, it became clear to Hitler’s command that it would not be possible to conquer the USSR quickly, and it was no longer possible to count on a “blitzkrieg” - a lightning war. The Red Army was pushing the Wehrmacht troops to the west. Most of all, Soviet troops advanced westward in the Kursk region, where a large protrusion arose - an arc 600 km long; where Soviet troops penetrated deeply into the location of German troops. When planning military operations for the summer of 1943, the Wehrmacht command set the task of undermining the offensive power of the Soviet troops and regaining the strategic initiative. In April 1943, the German command developed a plan for Operation Citadel, the goal of which was to defeat the Soviet troops in Kursk Bulge, which would then make it possible to launch a general offensive against Moscow. In Operation Citadel, the German command decided to demonstrate new military equipment - heavy Tiger tanks, medium tanks - Panther, heavy self-propelled guns of the Ferdinand type. The German command decided to deliver the main blow with tank formations and corps. The offensive was to be carried out by Army Group Center under the command of Field Marshal G.Kh. von Kluge and "South" by Field Marshal E. von Manstein. In the offensive area, the enemy concentrated 50 divisions with a total number of 900 thousand people; 16.5 thousand tanks, 2 thousand aircraft. The Soviet command became aware of the main provisions of Operation Citadel. On the Kursk Bulge, it was decided to create a strong defense, wear down the enemy on the defensive, and then, introducing fresh reserves, launch a counteroffensive and a general offensive. As a result of gigantic work, the Soviet command concentrated troops and material resources, for the first time since the beginning of the war, ensuring superiority of forces and means over the enemy: 1.3 million people; 3.4 thousand tanks, 3 thousand aircraft. The German offensive was to begin on July 5 at 3 am. But at dawn on July 5 at 2:20 a.m. unexpectedly for the German side, the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts launched a pre-emptive massive artillery strike on the areas where German attack groups were concentrated. The German command, which did not expect this, was forced to postpone the offensive to a later time. From the very first hours German offensive began to choke. Only after 5-6 days of battles did the Nazis manage to wedge themselves into the Soviet defenses to a depth of 8-10 km in some areas. Then Field Marshal E. von Manstein decided to make a breakthrough with tanks in the area of ​​the village of Prokhorovka. These plans also became known to the Soviet command. Additional tank units were urgently transferred to the Prokhorovka area. On June 12, the largest event occurred near Prokhorovka tank battle in world history: 1,200 tanks took part in it on both sides. On the Prokhorovsky field, the enemy left 400 tanks, 300 vehicles, and over 3,500 soldiers and officers. Defensive battles on the Central Front were completed on July 12, on the Voronezh Front - on July 23. On July 12, the offensive of Soviet troops began in the Oryol direction with the forces of the Central, Bryansk and Southwestern fronts, and on August 3, the troops of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts began in the Belgorod-Kharkov direction. The plan for Operation Citadel failed.

Operation Citadel is one of the most striking and terrible events of the Second World War. On July 5, 1943, German troops launched a full-scale offensive in the Kursk area. With the support of artillery and aviation, tank formations launched a powerful blow in the direction of Prokhorovka. Their task was to break through the defenses and encircle the Soviet group. This was the beginning of the end of the Second World War, Operation Citadel.

Revenge for the lost Stalingrad

1943 The Germans continue to retreat along the entire front. Having been defeated at Moscow and Stalingrad, they still hope to change the course of the war. Adolf Hitler wants to take revenge on the Kursk Bulge. The Fuhrer is personally involved in the development of the operation, which he called “Citadel”. With attacks from the north, west, south, the Germans want to destroy the powerful Soviet group, and then launch an offensive on the Don, Volga and Moscow.

The Fuhrer's strategic plans

Small station Prokhorovka Yuzhnaya railway Russia... It was here, according to the plan of the German command, that the decisive battle was to take place. It was planned that German tanks would go behind the rear of the Soviet troops, encircle them and destroy them. For this purpose, a powerful tank armada was brought here. The tanks had already been brought to the front lines. The Germans were preparing for the decisive push, the plan for Operation Citadel was ready to be executed. They knew that the Soviet command had brought huge tank forces here. However, Soviet T-34 tanks were inferior in armor thickness and firepower to the latest German Tigers.

According to intelligence

The outcome of the battle could only be decided by accurate information about the enemy’s forces and plans. Even before the war, the British managed to get hold of the German Enigma encryption machine. With its help, they deciphered secret German codes and obtained extremely important military information.

According to the agreement between England and the USSR, which was concluded at the very beginning of the war, both sides undertook to inform each other about Hitler's plans. The secret center for deciphering German codes was located in Bletchley Park, 60 miles from London. Carefully vetted, qualified specialists processed the intercepted encoded information here.

It was impossible to imagine that a foreign intelligence agent could penetrate here. And yet he penetrated. His name was John Cairncross. This man belonged to the legendary group Soviet intelligence officers, "Cambridge Five". The information that John Cairncross will convey to Moscow will be invaluable.

Secret information from Cairncross

1943 At the Kursk Bulge, the fascists decided to take revenge for the defeats inflicted on them. This time they were confident of victory. But the German command did not yet know that Germany’s military operations were already known in the Kremlin. Top secret information from John Cairncross contained details of the latest German military technology. The Soviet command became aware of details about the power, maneuverability and armor protection of combat vehicles. The agent reported on the latest tests at German testing grounds.

For the first time, information was received about new and powerful tanks"tiger", which the Soviet command had no idea about. The Germans created a type of armor in which the armor-piercing shells of the Red Army were powerless. Thanks to such secret information in the Soviet Union for short time were able to produce new shells capable of making holes in fascist tank armor.

The intelligence officer's information about the metal composition of the armor and its properties was received in April 1943, three months before the start of the Battle of Kursk.

Preparing for the upcoming battle

The Soviet side was able to take emergency measures to develop new weapons that would penetrate this armor. The tests were carried out in the strictest secrecy. At that time, the entire industry of the Soviet Union worked for the war. After the completion of the tests, mass production of shells capable of destroying German “tigers” began.

At the same time, Soviet tanks were modernized. In record time, the rear provided the army with the necessary weapons. There was a continuous stream of military equipment and Combat vehicles. Thousands of German aircraft were based near the front line. The Fuhrer assigned a special role to Luftwaffe pilots in the operation on the Kursk Bulge.

"Citadel" (military operation) as the Wehrmacht's last chance

On July 1, 1943, Adolf Hitler returned to his "Wolf's Lair" command post in East Prussia. There will be no more delay. The day of Operation Citadel is set: July 4th. A. Hitler said: “We need a victory at Kursk to dispel the darkness in the hearts of our allies. Remembering the previous names of military operations, we can say that this is nothing. Only the Citadel will become the turning point of great Germany.”

Despite the intensifying Allied bombing, some Nazi troops were transferred to the east. Although many divisions were understrength, the total number of troops participating in Operation Citadel was quite impressive. Among them are the most experienced soldiers and officers, a large number of soldier from the famous SS troops. The morale of the German military personnel was high.

The defeat at Stalingrad had not yet been forgotten. The battle for the city named after Stalin involved mainly soldiers of the Italian and Romanian armies. This time, unreliable allies will not participate in the battle on the Kursk Bulge.

Only victory will turn the tide of the war

Hitler decreed that Operation Citadel would be 100% a German affair. This confidence was reinforced by the large amount of modern equipment that arrived at the front every day. The airfields were unusually concentrated powerful forces Luftwaffe. In reality, all the weapons that Hitler intended to bring into battle in this battle were comparable to the amount prepared for the attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941.

However, the sheer scale of the upcoming battle worried Adolf Hitler, and he ordered that no public announcement of the upcoming Operation Citadel be made in advance. The Fuhrer said: “The mere thought of this turns me over, but I see no other way out.”

Morale of the Red Army

Germany faced an enemy that bore no resemblance to the pitiful battalions that had so easily surrendered in the early stages of the war. The Myth of Invincibility German army was dispelled at Stalingrad. The defense capability of the Soviet side was strengthened. As a result, the superiority of our defense industry over the German military industry became noticeable. This superiority was manifested not only in quantity, but also in quality. In German military factories, products that did not meet accuracy standards were rejected. There was no culling at Soviet factories. Unusable shells were used as warheads for missiles. German infantrymen hardly cursed anything more than Soviet Katyushas.

Operation Citadel begins

At dawn on July 5, 1943, the Germans were waiting for the signal to attack. The first signal was given, but from the Soviet side. Having secret information about the start of the secret operation "Citadel", the Soviet command decided to strike first. More than 1500 tanks and self-propelled guns came together in a decisive battle on both sides in the Battle of Prokhorov. The Germans did not expect that our T-34 tanks would be able to hit the strong, heavy-duty armor of the Tigers. In fifty days, the Nazis lost half a million of their soldiers, 1,500 tanks, 3,000 guns and 1,700 aircraft on these fields. These losses for Nazi Germany turned out to be irreparable.

Didn't take it by surprise

Marshal Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov (1896-1974) learned quite early about the upcoming Operation Citadel. Zhukov's headquarters guessed about the offensive. Hitler was very tempted to take revenge after the Battle of Stalingrad.

During May and June 1943, Marshal Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov ordered the laying of three deep belts of minefields along the perimeter of the arc.

Before the start of this monumental battle, Soviet troops had numerical superiority. Against 900 thousand German soldiers, G. K. Zhukov fielded 1 million 400 thousand. The superiority of the Soviet troops was especially noticeable in artillery. They had 20 thousand guns, which is twice as many as the enemy. The Red Army deployed 3,600 tanks against 2,700 German ones, 2,400 planes against 2,000 Luftwaffe planes.

Anxiety before the attack

By July 4, two large attacking groups were brought to full combat readiness. An atmosphere of gloomy anticipation reigned in the German troops, the reason for this was Operation Citadel. The Second World War gave many people the bitter taste of defeat and sweet taste victories Everyone knew that even for the greatest victories, soldiers always pay a high price. Tomorrow may not always come.

Ten minutes before the German columns were supposed to begin moving, the Soviet side began artillery counter-preparation. It was an ominous warning.

Start of the offensive

Large attacking groups entered the battle. The skies filled with the roar of aircraft engines as thousands of aircraft from the two German fleets took to the air.

On the first day, the 9th Army, whose armored forces were commanded by Field Marshal Otto Moritz Walter Model (1891-1945), advanced from the north to the south, advancing seven miles. The movement of the army from the south was led by Field Marshal General Manstein, Erich von (1887-1973). She walked 11 miles deep into Soviet territory. It was an encouraging success that barely resembled a blitzkrieg. The Soviet minefields turned out to be very deep, and the troops dug in were well prepared for defense.

Imperfections of German technology

The offensive continued, and the German troops encountered increasing difficulties. First of all, it turned out that specifications their tanks turned out to be worse than promised. The mechanical part of the “tigers” increasingly failed. By the end of the first day, out of 200 of these tanks, only 40 were fully suitable for combat. In the air, numerical superiority gradually also passed to the Russians.

By the third day, the Germans had disabled more than 450 Soviet tanks. But the enemy still had superiority in armored forces. The Germans were especially disheartened by the fact that the Soviet military equipment, without any doubt, overtook the German one. The Soviets succeeded where Germany failed.

The T-34 tank, previously familiar to the Germans, was equipped with a heavy 122-mm cannon. The Nazis heard rumors of even more formidable machines. The German offensive was difficult. Although slowly, Hitler’s two armies gradually moved closer together. Especially Field Marshal Manstein, Erich von, had a slight advantage.

The Soviet style of command underwent noticeable radical changes. Field commanders Marshal G.K. Zhukov mastered the skill of tactical withdrawal and probing counterattacks, and they lured German tanks into traps.

The Soviets also invented other methods. They created the so-called front package - a complex tactical grouping designed for both offense and defense.

His first line consisted of formidable Katyusha installations, followed by heavy artillery positions. When the latter did their job, the heavy tanks moved forward, carrying with them the infantry, which moved on board the lighter tanks. Operation Citadel began to crack. The constant order of attack of the front package allowed the Germans to develop the necessary countermeasures. But this did not help, such attacks still caused serious damage to the Wehrmacht soldiers.

After a week of brutal and uncompromising fighting, the German armored forces were significantly weakened, and the German command was forced to withdraw some of its units from the line of fire. This was required for a respite and regrouping of troops.

Battle of Prokhorovka

The Battle of Kursk (Operation Citadel) marked a decisive turning point in World War II. Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive, and nothing could stop this impulse. From this moment on, Hitler's troops would never go on the offensive again. They will only retreat.

On July 12, 1943, Marshal Zhukov launched a counteroffensive in the north of the arc, in the Orel area. The preliminary maneuvering produced unexpected but very serious consequences.

On this day, 700 German tanks of the 4th Army advanced near the small village of Prokhorovka. By coincidence, 850 Soviet tanks from the 5th Guards Tank Army were moving in the opposite direction. Neither side was aware of the other's approach until the tank crews, to their great horror, saw approaching enemy tanks through the viewing slits.

Two large columns collided with each other. The result was a battle unprecedented in scale. Never before or since have such a number of tanks - more than one and a half thousand - taken part in one battle. This unprepared clash was not justified by strategic decisions.

Once the battle began, there was no tactical planning and no clear unified command. The tanks fought separately, firing directly. The equipment collided with the enemy’s equipment, mercilessly crushing it, or dying under its tracks. Among the tank crews of the Red Army, this battle became a legend and went down in history as a death raid.

Eternal memory to the heroes

From July 5 to July 16, 1943, Operation Citadel continued. The Second World War saw many glorious military victories. However, this battle occupies a special place in human memory.

Today only monuments remind of past battles on Kursk land. Thousands of people contributed to this momentous victory, earning the admiration and memory of posterity.

To more accurately explain how Operation Citadel took place, it is necessary to introduce some military concepts.

Under front line refers to a straight line along the entire length of which troops are located. It should not be interrupted or take other forms, since the effectiveness of defense depends on this.

However, during combat operations on the front line, for various reasons, so-called "protrusions" and "dips". As a rule, the warring parties try to eliminate them, that is, to level the front line. When this fails, a strategic and tactical game begins around these ledges. This is what happened with the Kursk salient in the summer of 1943.

The ledge was formed during the Ostrog-Rossoshan operation in the winter of 1943. The 60th Army of General Chernyakhovsky, as part of the Voronezh Front, broke through the enemy’s defenses on January 25, liberated Voronezh and advanced 150 kilometers without encountering resistance. There were 25 kilometers left to Kursk, and the offensive potential of the army was not exhausted. Our units rushed to the Kursk area and on February 8 the city was liberated. After this, the troops switched to positional defense.

This is how the Kursk ledge was formed. Subsequently it received the name "Kursk Bulge".

Objectives and position of the parties on the eve of the operation

In the spring of 1943, it became clear that the main summer campaign would develop in the Kursk salient.

The German army suffered a number of defeats this year. In particular, The Battle of Stalingrad was lost, a turning point came in the battle for the Caucasus, not counting many less significant defeats. The offensive initiative was slipping away from the hands of the Wehrmacht army. Hitler needed a major victory to continue his strategic offensive. In addition, it would have a huge propaganda effect, showing the whole world the futility of resisting the German armed forces.

For this purpose, the command of the Third Reich developed the offensive Operation Citadel. Its implementation was prescribed for the 9th Army of the Center group, the Kempf operational group and the 4th Panzer Army of the South group. Based on the offensive plan, it was planned to launch simultaneous attacks on both fronts of the Kursk ledge, encircle the Soviet group, and then dissection of the front and development of the offensive.

Operation Citadel was the last attempt by the German army to maintain the strategic initiative.

By the summer the Red Army had a number of successes. In addition to those listed above, this was the breakthrough of the blockade of Leningrad, Operation Mars near Rzhev, the liquidation of the Demyansk bridgehead and others like them.

In the spring of 1943, the troops of the Central and Voronezh Front switched to a deliberate defense in the Kursk region. In April 1943, reports, texts and plans of the Nazis with a detailed description of Operation Citadel fell into the hands of the command.

The Headquarters of the Supreme High Command decided to prepare a deeply echeloned defense on the Kursk ledge, with the creation of strong second echelons and reserves. The depth of defense in some areas reached three hundred kilometers. The total length of trenches, trenches and communication passages was approximately ten thousand kilometers.

The main ideas were:

• deliberately giving the initiative to the enemy;
• force us to advance in the direction we need;
• wear him down with active defense;
• fetter his maneuver;
• inflict maximum damage;
• bring down offensive potential;
• force the introduction of reserves prematurely;
• after that go on a counteroffensive.

To ensure the stability of defense and carry out unexpected tasks, the Steppe Military District was created with its center in Voronezh.

Balance of forces and means. Preparing for battle

By the beginning of July, the Red Army in the Kursk direction managed to achieve some numerical superiority.

The overall superiority of forces and means over the Germans at the beginning of the Battle of Kursk was as follows:

• in terms of personnel 1.4 times;
• for guns and mortars by 1.9 times;
• for tanks 1.2 times;
• for airplanes - parity.

The northern face of the ledge was defended by troops of the Central Front consisting of 5 combined arms, 1 tank, 1 air army and 2 separate tank corps.

Here, Soviet troops outnumbered the enemy by 1.5 times in personnel, 1.8 times in artillery, and 1.5 times in tanks.

The southern face of the ledge was defended by troops of the Voronezh Front consisting of 5 combined arms, 1 tank, 1 air army, as well as 1 rifle and 2 tank corps.

The superiority of our troops was 1.4 times in personnel, 2 times in artillery, and 1.1 times in tanks.

Hitler attracted selected units to Operation Citadel. In total, 50 divisions (of which 16 tank divisions), 3 separate tank battalions, and 8 assault gun divisions were concentrated in the Kursk direction. Many formations, such as “Reich”, “Totenkopf”, “Viking”, “Adolf Hitler” were the elite of the Wehrmacht. The most experienced generals were chosen for the operation. New types of equipment and weapons from Germany arrived in the combat area. German industry has mastered serial production the latest tanks"Tiger", "Panther" self-propelled units"Ferdinand". In addition, 65% of all combat aircraft were involved in the operation.

For two months, the combat unification of units was carried out, the development of new equipment was carried out, and exercises were held in the depths of the defense on the topic of upcoming military operations.

Numerical superiority was on the side of the troops of the Soviet Union and did not allow the Nazis to carry out a successful offensive operation. However, the army group commanders managed to create the necessary superiority in certain sectors of the front and achieve the required artillery density to begin the operation.

By July, the command of the Soviet troops had also completed planning and preparation for the battle.

The two fronts received serious reinforcements from April to July. Namely 10 rifle divisions, 10 anti-tank fighter brigades, 13 separate anti-tank artillery regiments, 8 guards mortar regiments, 7 separate tank and self-propelled artillery regiments. In terms of the number of weapons, these are 5,635 guns, 3,522 mortars, 1,294 aircraft.

In the front defense zones, eight defensive lines up to three hundred kilometers deep were prepared, with engineering and minefields.

Classes, drills and exercises were conducted. The combat unification has been completed, the interaction between the military branches has been worked out.

Progress of hostilities

On the northern front of the Kursk Bulge, formations and units of the enemy's 9th Army concentrated in the initial areas for the offensive. The troops of the Central Front prepared for defense. The Soviet command knew not only the date, but also the time of the start of the offensive. Therefore, our troops launched a pre-emptive strike, the so-called artillery counter-preparation. The Germans suffered their first losses, the effect of surprise was lost, and troop control was disrupted.

The Nazi offensive began at 5.30 am on July 5 after artillery and air preparation. On the first day, with the fifth attack, the Nazis managed to break through the defenses of the first echelon and penetrate no more than 6-8 kilometers in depth.

On July 6, the enemy again launched an offensive with artillery and air preparation. The Soviet command launched a counterattack, but it did not have much effect; it was only possible to push the enemy back by 1-2 kilometers in some areas. In the first two days, our fighter aircraft were carried away in air battles with Nazi fighters and left enemy bombers unattended. Taking advantage of this opportunity, they broke through the defenses, and the bombs successfully reached the target. This error was subsequently fixed.

On July 7 and 8, battles took place for the second line of defense. The enemy brought in more and more forces, but our troops successfully held back the attacks.

On July 9, the German command involved almost all the formations that were part of the 9th Army in the battle. The commander had only one tank division and one infantry division left in reserve.

On July 12, the offensive resumed, but due to attacks by Soviet troops on the Bryansk Front north of the Kursk ledge, the Wehrmacht headquarters ordered the troops of the 9th Army to go on the defensive.

On the southern front, events developed somewhat differently. Here, the German offensive operations began on July 4, but the main operation unfolded the next day. After lengthy artillery preparation and air raids, the Nazis went on the offensive. It was carried out by units and formations of the 4th Panzer Army of the Kempf Task Force in two directions of the main attacks. On the first day, the Germans were able to penetrate the defenses of the Soviet troops to a depth of 8-10 km and continued their offensive towards the flanks. And on the night of July 6, we reached the second line of defense of our troops, gradually introducing fresh forces and increasing the pressure.

On July 7-8, the enemy continued to increase their efforts and slowly advanced. At the same time, an air battle broke out in the air. In the first three days, our pilots conducted more than 80 air battles and shot down over 100 Luftwaffe aircraft.

By July 9, the reserves of the Voronezh Front were exhausted, and the enemy continued to introduce more and more new forces. In the current conditions, the Headquarters ordered the transfer of two armies from the Steppe Military District to the front commander and the promotion of three more to the Kursk-Belgorod direction.

On July 10-11, a crisis had already emerged in the enemy’s actions. The Nazis made a roundabout maneuver towards Prokhorovka. There, on July 12, the largest military history tank battle. According to various estimates, up to 1,200 tanks took part in it on both sides. German tank The Tiger was superior to the T-34 in its combat capabilities, but the Soviet troops gained the upper hand in this battle. The enemy had exhausted all offensive potential and, having failed to achieve a breakthrough to the city of Kursk from the south, began to retreat.

On July 19, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command brought the Steppe Front into the battle. By July 23, our troops pushed back the Nazis and reached the lines from which the battle began.

Results and significance of Operation Citadel

Hitler lost the Battle of Kursk. The battle, which should have ended with the rapid encirclement of a million-strong group of Soviet troops, ended in complete collapse for the Wehrmacht. From this defeat Hitler's Germany never recovered.

The victory in the Battle of Kursk sealed the turning point in the course of the war. Victory in defensive operation near Kursk marked the beginning of a counteroffensive of Soviet troops in the direction of Belgorod-Kharkov and Orel-Bryansk. On August 5, 1943, the cities of Orel and Belgorod were liberated.

Fairly shabby fascist army, having lost all her fighting spirit, continued her shameful retreat.