текст "The Battle of Prokhorovka"
статья (английский язык, 10 класс) на тему

Prokhorovka

Battle of Prokhorovka

Accounts of this battle are controversial. The original Soviet account of a brave but reckless, although ultimately successful, massive Red Army assault on heavy German armor is now generally discounted; the most recent revisionist accounts suggest a Soviet debacle, with the Soviet charge on German armor being disrupted not by German tanks but because many T-34s fell into a Soviet anti-tank ditch. What is generally not disputed is that the Red Army did enough, at great cost, to stop a German breakthrough. In that sense Prokhorovka remains a crucial turning point of the battle and indeed of the Great Patriotic War: here the German army was stopped.

Memorial on Prokhorovka Field

On the morning of 12 July, Hoth, determined to push for a breakthrough, collected reserves of the 4th Panzer Army and advanced on Prokhorovka. At the same time the 5th Guards Tank Army launched a series of attacks as part of multi-front counteroffensive in an attempt to catch the Germans off balance. The SS and Guards units collided west of Prokhorovka in country punctuated by farms, rolling hills and gullies.

In stifling heat, an eight-hour battle began. The German units had 494 tanks and self-propelled artillery pieces in the attack, 90% of them operational. The German force found itself heavily outnumbered by the 5th Guards Tank Army, who, moving mainly at night, had brought 593 tanks and 37 self-propelled artillery pieces into position at Stary Oskol. They had not yet been committed to battle, so they were fresh.

The Soviet 31st Guards Tank Corps and the 33rd Guards Rifle Corps fought the 3rd SS Totenkopf to a standstill by getting in close to the German armor and attacking the vulnerable sides of the Tigers. The 2nd SS was soon forced onto the defensive. Although the German formation held, it lost half its armor in a prolonged engagement. By the night of 11–12 July, the only success the Germans had to show for their losses was a captured bridgehead over the Donets river at Rzavets. The 1st SS Division Leibstandarte had been stopped by the Soviet 18th Tank Corps, while the 3rd Panzer Corps and 2nd SS Panzer Division were checked by the 2nd Guards Tank Corps and two other Soviet reserve corps.

The air battle was also intense. Von Manstein had intended it to be the decisive blow against the Red Army forces to prevent a breakthrough to Oboyan and Kursk. Sturmoviks from 291 ShAD attacked the 2nd SS Panzer Division throughout the day, causing significant damage to German armored formations. Simultaneously, waves of Hs 129s and Ju 87s inflicted losses on the 69th Army and 5th Guards Army. Although Soviet tank losses are unknown, a report from the 29th Tank Corps reported "heavy losses in tanks through enemy aircraft and artillery". Losses were so heavy that the advance had to be halted and a switch to the defensive ordered.

The Luftwaffe had complete air superiority over Prokhorovka, due to the VVS being concentrated over the flanks of the 4th Panzer Army.

The battle can best be described as a costly tactical loss but an operational draw for the Red Army. Neither the 5th Guards Tank Army nor the 2nd SS Panzer Corps accomplished their missions that day. After the battle was over, the Soviets held the area and were able to recover their disabled tanks and wounded crews.

Tank losses in the battle have been a contentious subject. Red Army losses have been given from 200 to 822 tanks, but the records show about 300 complete losses and as many damaged. German losses have been reported to be as low as 80 and as high as several hundred. The Soviets claim the Germans lost 400 tanks in this battle and 3,500 soldiers killed, but newer research suggest only about 500 lost men and much lower tank losses, with only a few tanks completely destroyed and about 40-80 damaged. In any event, the losses of both the 2nd SS Panzer Corps and the 5th Guards Tank Army in what has been called the greatest tank battle of all time were not of the epic proportions sometimes attributed to the Prokorovka engagement.