and The Red Armys Advance West DC DD RL NH Thesis In an effort to gain a decisive advantage over the USSR Germany launched Operation Citadel an attack on the Kursk salient However German forces were met with unexpectedly large resistance and lost at the Battle of Kursk allowing the ID: 591416
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Slide1
Operation Citadel and The Red Army’s Advance West
DC, DD, RL, NH Slide2
Thesis
In an effort to gain a decisive advantage over the USSR, Germany launched Operation Citadel, an attack on the Kursk salient. However, German forces were met with unexpectedly large resistance and lost at the Battle of Kursk, allowing the Soviets to follow through on a counteroffensive against the Nazis from the East and led Germany to lose WWII on the Eastern front.Slide3
Kursk SalientSlide4
July 5
th
, 1943
Operation Citadel Start Date
May 3
rd
, 1943
Operation Citadel Original Start Date
February 2
nd
, 1943
Soviets defeat the Germans at the Battle of Stalingrad
July 12
th
, 1943
German offensive stopped at
Prokhorovka
, 1,500 tanks engaged
July 10
th
, 1943
Allied Forces Invade Sicily, Italy
July 16
th
, 1943Hitler calls end of Operation Citadel, German Troops withdrew to start line
August 3rd , 1943 Soviet Union Counterattack Begins
February 2
nd
, 1945
Vistula-Oder Offensive ends, Soviet forces are about 40 miles from BerlinSlide5
Background
Why did Germany start a battle on the Kursk salient?
Heavy losses after on the Eastern Front, especially the Battle of Stalingrad
Kursk is the center of the salient
Germany wanted to attack Kursk to destroy the salient
Germany needed to maintain their initiativeSlide6
July 5
th
, 1943
Operation Citadel Start Date
May 3
rd
, 1943
Operation Citadel Original Start Date
February 2
nd
, 1943
Soviets defeat the Germans at the Battle of Stalingrad
July 12
th
, 1943
German offensive stopped at
Prokhorovka
, 1,500 tanks engaged
July 10
th
, 1943
Allied Forces Invade
Sicily
, Italy
July 16th
, 1943Hitler calls end of Operation Citadel, German Troops withdrew to start lineAugust 3rd
, 1943
Soviet Union Counterattack Begins
February 2
nd
, 1945
Vistula-Oder Offensive ends, Soviet forces are about 40 miles from BerlinSlide7
Operation Citadel
German offensive against the Soviet Union at the Kursk Salient
Germany planned a pincer attack to cut off the salient
Germany wanted to end the Eastern Front
The Soviet Union wanted to launch an offensiveSlide8
The Battle of Kursk
On July 5th Germany launches Operation Citadel
Pincer Attack
USSR received intelligence before the attack began
Soviets turn Kursk salient into a fortress, over a million Soviet troopsSlide9
The Battle of Kursk
Ninth Army attacks in the North
Fourth Panzer Army attacks in the South
Luftwaffe aided the German offensive
Soviet air force, fought against LuftwaffeSlide10
July 5
th
, 1943
Operation Citadel Start Date
May 3
rd
, 1943
Operation Citadel Original Start Date
February 2
nd
, 1943
Soviets defeat the Germans at the Battle of Stalingrad
July 12
th
, 1943
German offensive stopped at
Prokhorovka
, 1,500 tanks engaged
July 10
th
, 1943
Allied Forces Invade
Sicily
, Italy
July 16th
, 1943Hitler calls end of Operation Citadel, German Troops withdrew to start lineAugust 3
rd
, 1943
Soviet Union Counterattack Begins
February 2
nd
, 1945
Vistula-Oder Offensive ends, Soviet forces are about 40 miles from BerlinSlide11
The Battle of Kursk
Confrontation at Prokhorovka on July 12th
Last encounter (pro core rove kya)
Largest tank encounter ~ 1500 tanks
Western front diverts German forces
Hitler called off Operation CitadelSlide12
Commanders
Field Marshal Erich Von Manstein (Germany)
Leader on the Eastern Front
Led Army Group South in Operation Citadel
Wanted to take initiative at Kursk
Against Hitler on ending the operation
General Georgy Zhukov (Soviet Union)
Foresaw attack and convinced Stalin to defend
Turned Kursk into a fortressSlide13
Soviet Union Defense
Soviets turned the Kursk salient into a fortress
Soviets had over a million men
Included anti-tank ditches, strong points, machine gun nests, barbed wire, and minefieldsSlide14
USSR Military Deception
Soviet Union deceptively militarized the Kursk Salient
Dummy Airfields
Simulated communication centers
False gun positions“Deception, the maskirovka at which the Red Army had come to excel ,was comprehensively employed to obscure details.” (Showalter 65)Slide15Slide16
Tanks
Previously, Soviet tanks were better than Germans
Soon Germany developed better tanks like the Panther and the Tiger
This was the largest tank battle in history
Total Soviet tanks: 5000
Total German Tanks: 3000Slide17
T-34 Panther
USSR GermanySlide18
July 5
th
, 1943
Operation Citadel Start Date
May 3
rd
, 1943
Operation Citadel Original Start Date
February 2
nd
, 1943
Soviets defeat the Germans at the Battle of Stalingrad
July 12
th
, 1943
German offensive stopped at
Prokhorovka
, 1,500 tanks engaged
July 10
th
, 1943
Allied Forces Invade Sicily, Italy
July 16
th
, 1943Hitler calls end of Operation Citadel, German Troops withdrew to start
lineAugust 3rd , 1943
Soviet Union Counterattack
Begins
February 2
nd
, 1945
Vistula-Oder Offensive ends, Soviet forces are about 40 miles from BerlinSlide19
The Red Army’s Advance West
Stalin launch counter-offensive on August 3rd
Dominate Eastern Front until end of war
Hitler creates Panther and Wotan Lines
Fall back and defend
Failed ~ Red Army continued advance
Drove back German forces all the way to Berlin
Numerous battles and operations on the way, liberated many Jewish CampsSlide20Slide21
Importance
Marks change in German strategy
Last major offensive Germany launched
Germany on defensive for the rest of WWII
“After Citadel, there was no position the Germans could defend, no line they could maintain, if the Red Army was willing to pay the price of breaking it.” (Showalter 271)Slide22
Importance
Germany lost the Eastern Front
Largest tank battle in world history
Show off Soviet Union power and technology
Beginning of Soviet Union race to BerlinSlide23
Questions?Slide24
Works Cited
Cherniak, Jan, et al. “Multimedia Map.” Pobediteli, english.pobediteli.ru/. Accessed 15 Apr. 2017.Floyd, Daniel.
World War II: The Battle of Kursk - Extra History. Extra Credits, 15 Feb. 2016, youtu.be/C-UvLZSK3CI. Accessed 14 Apr. 2017.Fredriksen, John C. "Erich Von
Manstein." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/317696. Accessed 18 Apr. 2017
Fredriksen, John C. "Georgi Zhukov." World History: The Modern Era
, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/316269. Accessed 19 Apr. 2017
Nipe
, George M. “Battle of Kursk: Germany's Lost Victory in World War II.”
HistoryNet
, 12 June 2006, www.historynet.com/battle-of-kursk-germanys-lost-victory-in-world-war-ii.htm. Accessed 18 Apr. 2017.
Peck, Michael. “Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright: Why Kursk Is the Most Overhyped Battle in History.”
The National Interest
, The Center for the National Interest, 13 Aug. 2016, nationalinterest.org/feature/tiger-tiger-burning-bright-why-kursk-the-most-overhyped-17334. Accessed 19 Apr. 2017.
Showalter, Dennis E.
Armor and Blood: the Battle of Kursk, the Turning Point of World War II
. New York, Random House, 2013.“Soviets Stop Germans at Kursk.” WW2History.Com, ww2history.com/key_moments/Eastern/
Soviets_stop_Germans_at_Kursk. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.Watts, Tim. "Battle of Kursk." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/309509. Accessed 15 Apr. 2017.“World War II: Operation Citadel.” Jewish Virtual Library
, American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise, www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/operation-citadel. Accessed 19 Apr. 2017.