Table of Contents
List of Illustrations vii
List of Maps x
Preface xi
Introduction: 'Battle of Kursk' or 'Battle between Orel and Belgorod'? xiv
1 The Strategic Context: The Preparations for the Summer Battle, 1943 17
The Strategic Situation of the German Reich in Spring 1943 17
German Strategic Considerations on the Eastern Front, 1943 20
German Operational Planning, Spring 1943 24
The Postponement of the Attack 30
The Struggle for Qualitative Superiority on the Battlefield 38
German Operational Planning for Citadel 51
Soviet Preparations for the Battle of Kursk 60
Intelligence and Espionage Prior to Operation Citadel 67
The Correlation of Forces on the Eve of the Battle 74
2 The Bulge of Fire: The Battles of Kursk, Orel and Khar'kov in Summer 1943 81
The Probing Attack by XXXXVIII Panzer Corps, 4 July 1943 81
The Soviet Counter-Preparations during the Night of 4-5 July 1943 83
The Air Battle over the Kursk Salient, 5 July 1943 89
The Attack of the Ninth Army on Kursk 95
The Assault of Army Detachment Kempf East of Belgorod 113
The Tank Battle at Prokhorovka, 12 July 1943 121
The Abandonment of the German Offensive against Kursk 129
Operation Kutuzov: The Soviet Offensive at Orel 136
Operation Polkovodets Rumyantsev: The Soviet Offensive at Khar'kov 143
3 A Battle of Attrition: Consequences of the Summer Battles in 1943 151
The Outcome of the Battle of Kursk and the Tally of Losses 151
The Significance of the Battle of Kursk for German Reich and USSR 165
4 Lost Memories: The Battle of Kursk in Post-War Historiography 169
The Battle of Kursk in the Memoirs of German Military Leaders 169
The Battle of Kursk in Soviet/Russian Historiography 174
Epilogue: The Place of the Battle of Kursk in History 179
Bibliography 183
Index 198
