Ministry general education Russian Federation

Novgorod State University named after Yaroslav the Wise

Humanitarian Institute

Department of History of Russia

ROAD REVERSE IN THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR. 1942-1943

Completed:

4th year student of OZO

Faculty of History

Bogun Yu.V.

Checked:

"____" ______________ 2000

Velikiy Novgorod

Strategic situation in autumn 1942.… 2

The environment of the German fascist troops near Stalingrad 3

Battle of Kursk.… 12

Forcing the Dnieper.… 20

Conclusion.… 25

The situation on the fronts of the world war was determined by the results of the armed struggle that unfolded in the summer and autumn of 1942, the military-political goals of the belligerent states, their capabilities in building up forces and means, as well as the specific features of each theater of military operations.

Hostilities reached their greatest scope and intensity on the Soviet-German front, where in the summer more than 700 calculated divisions (up to 12 million people), about 130 thousand guns and mortars, many thousands of tanks and aircraft took part in the armed struggle on both sides. By autumn, the length of the Soviet-German front had reached almost 6200 km - the maximum value for the entire war.

As a result of the heroic resistance of the Soviet troops, the enemy offensive on the southern wing of the Soviet-German front was stopped. The offensive capabilities of the strike groupings of enemy troops have dried up. The strategic plan of the fascist German command for the summer of 1942 failed. On October 14, 1942, the Wehrmacht High Command was forced to issue Operational Order No. 1 on a temporary transition to strategic defense. However, in Stalingrad, as well as in the areas of Nalchik and Tuapse, active hostilities continued.

Despite the fact that in most areas the enemy offensive was stopped, the situation on the southern wing of the Soviet-German front remained difficult. The most important water artery of the country - the Volga, the last communication that directly connected the central regions with Transcaucasia, was under the blows of the enemy. The threat of a breakthrough by the Nazi troops through the passes of the Main Caucasian Range on the coast of the Caucasus to the last bases of the Black Sea Fleet and to the most important oil-bearing region of the country, Baku, was not removed.

“Never before on the Soviet-German front were there so many enemy formations as by November 1942 - 266 divisions, of which 193.5 German, 18 Finnish, 26 Romanian, 11.5 Italian, 14 Hungarian, 2 Slovak and 1 Spanish . The enemy ground forces were supported by large aviation forces. Against Soviet Union there were also significant fleet forces. At the end of 1942, the main forces of the German surface fleet, submarines and up to 300 aircraft were involved in the fight on the northern communications. In the Baltic and Black Seas there were mainly light forces of the enemy fleet.

More than 80 percent of the main enemy forces were concentrated in Army Groups North, Center and B on the front from the Gulf of Finland to Stalingrad. On the northern sector of the Soviet-German front from the Barents Sea to the Gulf of Finland, the 20th German Army and Finnish troops operated, in the North Caucasus - Army Group A.

The main forces of the Soviet Army were also concentrated between the Gulf of Finland and Astrakhan. Ten fronts unfolded here:

Leningradsky, Volkhovsky, Severo-Zapadny - in the north-west direction; Kalininsky, Western and Moscow defense zones - in the western direction;

Bryansk, Voronezh, the newly formed South-Western, Donskoy, Stalingrad - in the south-western direction. The Karelian Front and the 7th Separate Army operated on the northern flank of the strategic front, and the Transcaucasian Front on the southern flank.”

The active army had 390 rifle and cavalry divisions, 254 rifle, separate tank and mechanized brigades, 30 fortified areas, 17 tank and mechanized corps. Preparing for major operations, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command also formed strategic reserves.

Significant assistance to the Soviet troops was provided by the nationwide struggle behind enemy lines. The number of partisan forces alone reached more than 125 thousand people. They disrupted enemy communications and conducted reconnaissance in the interests of the army in the field.

The Northern, Red Banner Baltic and Black Sea fleets included 2 battleships, 6 cruisers, 4 leaders, 27 destroyers and destroyers, 87 submarines, 757 combat aircraft. In the autumn of 1942, the fleets operated in difficult conditions. The Red Banner Baltic Fleet could only use bases in Kronstadt and Leningrad, and the Black Sea Fleet on the coast of the Caucasus. The fleets performed the tasks of protecting their communications and disrupting the enemy's maritime traffic, attacking its ports and coastal facilities, and assisting ground forces in coastal areas. Important tasks were also carried out by the Ladoga, Volga and Caspian military flotillas.

In terms of the scale and results of the armed struggle, the Soviet-German front, by the beginning of a new stage of the war, remained the main front of the Second World War. It was here that the striking forces of the fascist bloc were subjected to exhaustion. Of all the losses suffered by the German armed forces in the second half of 1942, 96 percent were losses on the eastern front. .

Since November 1942, i.e. from the beginning of the victorious offensive of the Soviet troops near Stalingrad, the second period of the Great Patriotic War (November 1942-December 1943) began, which went down in history as a period of a radical turning point in the course of the war.

For two hundred days and nights, fierce battles and battles of the Battle of Stalingrad did not subside on a vast territory between the Volga and Don rivers. This great battle in scope, tension and consequences, it was unparalleled in history. She came milestone on the path of the Soviet people to victory.

During the defensive battle Soviet troops repelled the onslaught of the enemy, exhausted and bled his strike groupings, and then, in a counteroffensive brilliant in design and execution, completely defeated the main one.

The strategic offensive operation of the Soviet Armed Forces to encircle and defeat the fascist troops near Stalingrad lasted from November 19, 1942 to February 2, 1943. According to the nature of the operational-strategic tasks, the operation can be divided into three major stages: breaking through the defense, defeating the enemy’s flank groupings and encirclement of the 6th and part of the forces of the 4th Panzer German armies; disruption of the enemy's attempts to release the encircled grouping and the development of the counteroffensive of the Soviet troops on the outer front of the encirclement; completion of the defeat of the encircled Nazi troops.

By the beginning of the counteroffensive, the troops of the opposing sides in the Stalingrad direction occupied the following position.

In the 250-kilometer strip from Upper Mamon to Kletskaya, the South-Western Front was deployed. To the southeast, from Kletskaya to Yerzovka, the Don Front operated in a 150-kilometer zone. From the northern outskirts of Stalingrad to Astrakhan, in a strip up to 450 km wide, were the troops of the Stalingrad Front.

“The fascist German Army Group B, on whose right wing the main blow of the Soviet troops was to fall, defended a front with a length of about 1400 km. Its left-flank German 2nd Army, located northwest of Voronezh, covered the Kursk direction. The 2nd Hungarian Army, adjacent to it, operated on the right bank of the Don in the Kharkov direction. Further along the Don, from Novaya Kalitva to Veshenskaya, in the Voroshilovgrad direction, the 8th Italian army was located, east, from Veshenskaya to Kletskaya, the 3rd Romanian army was on the defensive. In the area immediately adjacent to Stalingrad, the unsuccessful offensive battles connections of the 6th German, and to the south of the city to Krasnoarmeysk - the 4th German tank armies. The troops of the 4th Romanian Army, which was under operational control of the 4th German Tank Army, defended themselves from Krasnoarmeysk and further south. On the extreme right wing of the army group to the Manych River, where the dividing line between Army Groups “B” and “A” passed, the 16th motorized division of the 4th German tank army fought on a wide front.

The fascist German troops were supported by aviation of the Don Air Force Command and part of the forces of the 4th Air Fleet. In total, the enemy had more than 1200 aircraft in this direction. The main efforts of enemy aviation were directed to strike at Soviet troops in Stalingrad. And crossing the Volga and the Don.

There were eight divisions in the reserve of Army Group B, including three tank divisions (of which one was Romanian). The activity of Soviet troops in other sectors of the front did not allow the enemy to transfer forces and equipment to Stalingrad.

In the course of fierce defensive battles, the fronts of the Stalingrad direction were significantly weakened. Therefore, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, in preparing the operation, paid special attention to strengthening them. The strategic reserves that arrived at these fronts made it possible to change the balance of forces and means in favor of the Soviet troops by the start of the counteroffensive. Soviet troops significantly outnumbered the enemy in artillery and especially in tanks. The Southwestern and Stalingrad fronts, which were assigned a decisive role in the operation, had the greatest superiority in tanks.

Soviet command it was also possible to achieve a slight advantage over the enemy in aircraft. Based on the general strategic plan of the counteroffensive, the direct preparation of which in the fronts began in the first half of October 1942, the front commanders decided to conduct front-line operations.

“The strike force of the Southwestern Front, consisting of the 5th Panzer Army of General P.L. Romanenko and the 21st Army of General I.M. Chistyakov, was to go on the offensive from the bridgeheads in the areas of Serafimovich and Kletskaya. She had to break through the enemy's defenses, defeat the 3rd Romanian army and, developing a swift offensive in the general direction of Kalach, on the third day of the operation, connect with the troops of the Stalingrad Front. At the same time, it was envisaged by the forces of the 1st Guards Army - Commander General D. D. Lelyushenko - to strike in a south-western direction, reach the line of the Krivaya and Chir rivers and create an actively operating external encirclement front here. Cover and air support for the troops were assigned to the 17th Air Army under the command of General S. A. Krasovsky. The formations of the 2nd Air Army were also involved - commander General K. N. Smirnov.

By decision of the front commander, the main blow was delivered by the 64th, 57th and 51st armies, commanded by Generals M.S. Shumilov, F.I. Tolbukhin and N.I. Trufanov. The shock grouping of the front received the task of going on the offensive from the area of ​​​​the Sarpinsky Lakes, defeating the 6th Romanian Army Corps and, developing the offensive to the north-west, in the direction of Sovetsky, Kalach, to link up with the troops of the Southwestern Front here. Part of the forces of the front was to advance in the direction of Abganerovo, Kotelnikovsky and create an external encirclement front at this line. The efforts of the 8th Air Army of the Front, Commander General T. T. Khryukin, were supposed to be concentrated on covering and supporting the front’s shock group.”

The Don Front struck from the bridgehead in the Kletskaya area with the forces of the 65th Army of General P.I. Batov and from the Kachalinskaya area with the forces of the 24th Army of General I.V. Galanin.

Long-range aviation was planned to be used in the zone of the South-Western Front. Covering the troops in Stalingrad was assigned to the 102nd Air Defense Fighter Aviation Division.

The commanders of the Southwestern and Stalingrad fronts, in accordance with the plan of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, provided for the creation of an encirclement simultaneously with the internal and external front, the total length of which could be 300-350 km ..

In accordance with the decisions of the commanders of the fronts, groupings of forces and means were created, and offensive missions were assigned to the armies. The armies operating in the directions of the main attacks of the fronts (5th Panzer, 21st and 51st) had the greatest depth of operation. For them, a high rate of advance of mobile formations was planned, which was to play a decisive role in completing the encirclement of the enemy grouping.

The direct defense of the city was carried out by the 62nd and 64th armies. The 63rd, 4th Tank, 1st Guards, 24th and 66th armies, operating northwest of Stalingrad, continued to play a major role during the battle, and the 57th and 51st armies operating south of the city. September 13 the enemy struck at the junction of the 62nd and 64th armies, captured the village of Kuporosnoye and went to the Volga. The flanks of both armies were divided, but the enemy failed to develop further success. The troops of the 64th Army took up defensive positions at the line of the southern outskirts of Kuporosnaya, Kuporosnaya Balka, Ivanovka. On August 29, the 62nd Army was transferred to the South-Eastern Front. The troops of this army, which since September 12 was commanded by Lieutenant General V.I. Chuikov, defended the central and northern parts of the city. Isolated from the north from the troops of the Stalingrad Front, and from the south from the main forces of the Southeastern Front, the 62nd Army was significantly inferior to the enemy opposing it both in terms of personnel and weapons.

Having begun the assault on Stalingrad on September 13, the enemy directed his main efforts until September 26 to capture its central and southern parts. The fighting was extremely fierce. A particularly stubborn struggle was waged in the area of ​​Mamaev Kurgan, on the banks of the Tsaritsa, in the area of ​​the elevator, around the stations Stalingrad-1, Stalingrad-2, on the western outskirts of Elshanka.

During two nights, September 15 and 16, the 13th Guards Rifle Division of General A.I. Rodimtsev crossed to the right bank of the Volga, arriving to replenish the bloodless 62nd Army. The guard units pushed back the German troops from the area of ​​the central crossing across the Volga, cleared many streets and quarters of them, and drove them out of the Stalingrad-1 station. On September 16, the troops of the 62nd Army, with the support of aviation, stormed the Mamaev Kurgan.

On September 16 and 17, especially intense fighting took place in the city center. The 92nd Naval Rifle Brigade, formed from the sailors of the Baltic and Northern fleets, and the 137th tank brigade, which was armed with light tanks.

The 64th Army, which continued to hold the lines it occupied, diverted part of the enemy's forces to itself. On September 21 and 22, the enemy's forward detachments broke through to the Volga in the area of ​​the central crossing. The Germans captured most of the city.

Reinforcements continued to arrive to help the defenders of Stalingrad. On the night of September 23, the 284th Rifle Division under the command of Colonel N.F. crossed over to the right bank. Batyuk.

In the city, on the streets and squares of which fierce battles unfolded, there was still a part of the inhabitants. The operational groups of the city defense committee, which remained in the city, directed the activities of the surviving enterprises. Workers repaired damaged tanks, made weapons, shells, anti-tank weapons. Many residents of the city with weapons in their hands fought against the enemy.

From the end of September, the main efforts of the enemy were directed towards capturing the northern part of the city, where the largest industrial enterprises were located. Stubborn fighting also took place in the Mamaev Kurgan area and on the extreme right flank of the 62nd Army in the Orlovka area. Street fighting took place on the territory of the workers' settlements "Red October" and "Barrikada".

The main forces of the Stalingrad Front were cut off by the enemy from the city. With this in mind, at the end of September, the Headquarters renamed the Stalingrad Front into the Don Front. Lieutenant General K.K. Rokossovsky was appointed commander of the Don Front. Southeastern Front, whose troops fought for the city, was renamed the Stalingrad Front (commanded by Colonel General A.I. Eremenko). Later, on the right wing of the Don Front, a new, Southwestern Front was created (commanded by Lieutenant General N.F. Vatutin).

The command of the Stalingrad Front sought to weaken the onslaught of the Nazi troops directly on the city. To this end, private operations were carried out south of Stalingrad. September 29 - October 4, the troops of the 51st Army launched a counterattack in the Sadovoe area. Around the same time, a second counterattack was delivered by the 57th and 51st armies in the area of ​​lakes Sarpa, Tsatsa and Barmantsak. These counterattacks forced the German command to withdraw part of its forces from the main direction, which temporarily weakened the enemy's onslaught directly on the city. In addition, as a result of these actions, the Soviet troops seized advantageous bridgeheads for the subsequent counteroffensive.

In the first days of October, the 62nd Army defended itself along a front 25 km long and 200 m to 2.5 km deep. By this time, the enemy had completely occupied the territory of the city south of the Tsaritsa River to Kuporosny and reached the top of the Mamaev Kurgan, which allowed him to view and shoot through the positions held by the 62nd Army, as well as the crossings across the Volga.

The southern part of Stalingrad (Kirov district) was steadfastly defended by the 64th Army under the command of General M.S. Shumilov.

In the northern part of Stalingrad, the enemy, at the cost of incredible efforts and huge losses, took possession of the Orlovka area, deepened into the territory of industrial settlements. The Nazis owned the territory of the central and northern parts of the city: Yermansky, Dzerzhinsky, a significant part of Krasnooktyabrsky, Barrikadny and Traktorozavodsky districts. From the first days of October, battles began for the Krasny Oktyabr, Barrikada and Tractor factories, located north of Mamaev Kurgan.

From the end of September, the entire vast territory of the tractor plant was engulfed in fires. Hundreds of German planes bombarded him with air strikes. The enemy sought to break through to the tractor factory and take possession of it. The approaches to it were defended by a group of Colonel S.F. Gorokhov, as well as the 112th and 308th rifle divisions of colonels I.E. Ermolkin and L.N. Gurtiev. On the night of October 4, they were joined by the 37th Guards Rifle Division of General V.G. Zheludeva. Armed detachments of workers also fought for their enterprises.

A stubborn struggle was also going on for the Krasny Oktyabr and Barrikada factories. October 14 was the day of the most difficult trials for the defenders of Stalingrad. After powerful aviation and artillery preparation, the Nazis rushed to the tractor plant and the Barrikady plant. Several German divisions advanced on a section of about 5 km.

The troops of the 37th Guards, 95th, 308th and 112th Rifle Divisions, exhausted in fierce battles, fought for every house, floor, and landing. After a four-hour battle, the Germans broke into the territory of the tractor factory, and then went to the Volga. The right flank of the 62nd Army was cut off from the main forces north of the Mokraya Mechetka River, the northern group of the 62nd Army under the command of Colonel S.F. Gorokhova, engulfed by the Nazis from three sides and pressed against the Volga, staunchly defended.

On the territory of the tractor plant, fierce battles continued until October 18. Most of the soldiers and officers of the 37th Guards Rifle Division, which bore the brunt of the struggle, died heroically defending the plant. The remnants of the 37th Guards and 95th Rifle Divisions were withdrawn to the outskirts of the Barrikady plant, where they continued to fight. Crossed to the right bank of the Volga, the 138th Infantry Division of Colonel I.I. Lyudnikova joined the struggle for the village and the Barrikady factory.

The defenders of Stalingrad adamantly held the city. In the hands of the enemy were Mamaev Kurgan, exits to the Volga in the area of ​​​​the tractor plant and the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe mouth of the Tsaritsa. The territory occupied by the 62nd Army was shot through by enemy artillery and mortars, and in some places by machine-gun and automatic fire. All city buildings that were held by Soviet soldiers were destroyed by German aircraft. The rest of them perished in the fire.

After the Nazis reached the Volga, Stalingrad retained railway communications only on the eastern bank of the river. German aviation, with their raids on railway lines and stations, disrupted military transportation. Therefore, cargo and troops sent to Stalingrad from the rear of the country were unloaded from trains 250-300 km from the front. Then they were transferred to the crossings across the Volga along dirt roads.

In an attempt to isolate the Soviet troops from the rear, the enemy fired artillery and mortar fire at the crossings. However, the connection between Stalingrad and the eastern shore was provided engineering troops, river civil fleet and ships of the Volga military flotilla. They transported troops, weapons, ammunition, food to the right bank, and wounded soldiers and civilians were evacuated from Stalingrad to the left bank. Interacting with the troops defending Stalingrad, the military flotilla supported them with artillery fire from their ships, and landed landing groups.

In the difficult situation of street fighting, the defenders of Stalingrad showed great courage and steadfastness. The officers and generals leading the fight were directly in the battle zone. This allowed, for example, the command of the 62nd Army - General V.I. Chuikov, a member of the military council of the army K.A. Gurov, Chief of Staff of the Army N.I. Krylov and their associates - to ensure continuity of command and communication with the troops. The command posts of the divisions of this army were located 200-300m from the front line.

The struggle in Stalingrad was carried on day and night with extreme bitterness. The defense of the 62nd Army was divided into three main centers of struggle:

Rynok and Spartanovka district, where the group of Colonel S.F. Gorokhov; the eastern part of the Barrikady plant, which was held by the soldiers of the 138th division; then, after a gap of 400 - 600m, the main front of the 62nd Army went - from the "Red October" to the pier. The left flank in this area was occupied by the 13th Guards Division, whose positions were close to the banks of the Volga. The southern part of the city continued to be defended by units of the 64th Army.

German troops The 6th Army of Paulus was never able to capture the entire territory of Stalingrad. A striking example of the stamina of its defenders was the heroic defense of Pavlov's House.

In early November, ice appeared on the Volga. Communication with the right bank was broken, the Soviet soldiers ran out of ammunition, food, and medicines. However legendary city on the Volga remained undefeated.

Intention offensive operation in the Stalingrad area was discussed at the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command already in the first half of September. “At this time, writes Marshal A.M. Vasilevsky, we were finishing the formation and training of strategic reserves, which largely consisted of tank and mechanized units and formations, armed for the most part with medium and heavy tanks; stockpiles of other military equipment and ammunition were created. All this allowed Headquarters already in September 1942. draw a conclusion about the possibility and expediency of delivering a decisive blow to the enemy in the near future ...

When discussing these issues at Headquarters, in which General G.K. Zhukov and I, it was determined that the planned counter-offensive should include two main operational tasks: one - to encircle and isolate the main grouping of German troops operating directly in the city area, and the other - to destroy this grouping. The counteroffensive plan, which received the code name "Uranus", was notable for its purposefulness and boldness of design. The offensive of the Southwestern, Don and Stalingrad fronts was to unfold on an area of ​​​​400 square meters. km. Troops making the main maneuver to encircle the enemy grouping had to fight a distance of up to 120-140 km from the north and up to 100 km from the south. It was envisaged to create two fronts to encircle the enemy - internal and external.

When choosing decisive strikes, it was taken into account that the main enemy grouping was located in the Stalingrad region, and its flanks on the middle reaches of the Don and south of Stalingrad were covered mainly by Romanian and Italian troops, which had relatively low equipment and combat capability. Many Italian, Romanian and Hungarian soldiers and officers at that time asked themselves the question: why are they dying in the snows of Russia, far from their homeland?

In the first half of November, large forces of Soviet troops were drawn up to Stalingrad, and huge flows of military cargo were transferred. The concentration of formations and their regrouping inside the fronts were carried out only at night and were carefully camouflaged.

The command of the Wehrmacht did not expect the counteroffensive of the Red Army near Stalingrad. This misconception was supported by erroneous forecasts by German intelligence. According to some signs, the Nazis nevertheless began to guess about the impending Soviet offensive in the south, but they did not know the main thing: the scale and time of the offensive, the composition of the strike groups and the direction of their strikes.

On the directions of the main attacks, the Soviet command created a double and triple superiority of forces. The decisive role was assigned to four tank and two mechanized corps.

November 19, 1942 The Red Army launched a counteroffensive near Stalingrad. The troops of the Southwestern and right wing of the Don Fronts broke through the defenses of the 3rd Romanian Army in several sectors. Developing the offensive in the southeast direction, mobile formations advanced 35-40 km in the first two days, repelling all enemy counterattacks. Rifle formations also solved the assigned tasks. On November 20, the Stalingrad Front went on the offensive. Its strike groups broke through the defenses of the 4th Panzer Army of the Germans and the 4th Romanian Army, and mobile formations rushed into the gaps formed - the 13th and 4th mechanized and 4th cavalry corps.

Command post The 6th German army was under the threat of attack by the advancing Soviet troops, and Pauls was forced to hastily transfer him from Glubinskoye to Nizhne-Chirskaya. The enemy was in a panic.

At dawn on November 22, in the offensive zone of the Southwestern Front, the advance detachment of the 26th Tank Corps, led by Lieutenant Colonel G.N. left bank of the river.

On November 23, the mobile troops of the Southwestern and Stalingrad Fronts closed the encirclement around the 6th and part of the forces of the 4th Panzer German armies. 22 divisions numbering about 330 thousand. people were surrounded. In addition, during the offensive, large forces of the Romanian troops were defeated.

During the period from November 24 to mid-December, in the course of stubborn battles, a continuous internal encirclement front arose around the enemy grouping. Active hostilities were also conducted on the huge external front, which was created during the offensive operation.

Attempts to eliminate the encircled group on the move did not bring the expected results. It turned out that a serious miscalculation had been made in assessing its strength. Initially, it was believed that under the command of Paulus is 85-90 thousand. people, and in fact there were over 300 thousand. Therefore, the elimination of the encircled enemy required careful preparation.

The main command of the Wehrmacht was preparing to release the troops surrounded in the Stalingrad region. To solve this problem, the enemy created the Don army group. It included all the troops located south of the middle reaches of the Don to the Astrakhan steppes, and the encircled Paulus group. The commander was appointed General Field Marshal Manstein. Troops from the Caucasus, near Voronezh, Orel, as well as from France, Poland and Germany, were hastily transferred to reinforce the Don Army Group. In front of the troops of the Southwestern Front there were 17 divisions from the Don Army Group, and 13 divisions under the command of General Goth opposed the troops of the 5th shock and 51st armies of the Stalingrad Front. The enemy command gave the order to carry out the operation "Winter Thunderstorm".

On the morning of December 12, the German troops of the Goth group went on the offensive from the Kotelnikov area, delivering the main blow along the Tikhoretsk-Stalingrad railway. the troops of the 51st Army of the Stalingrad Front opposing the enemy here had significantly less forces and means. The Nazis, having a particularly large superiority in the number of tanks and aircraft, broke through the Soviet defenses and by the evening of the first day they reached the southern bank of the Aksai River. For several days, units of the 51st Army under the command of Major General N.I. Trufanov fought fierce battles, holding back the onslaught of the enemy on the northern bank of the Aksai River. Taking advantage of the superiority of forces, the Germans crossed this river and began to move towards the next frontier - the Myshkova River.

A fierce tank battle unfolded between the Aksai and Myshkova rivers. A particularly stubborn struggle went on for the Verkhne-Kumsky farm.

The Kotelnikovskaya grouping of the enemy, having suffered huge losses, nevertheless broke through to the Myshkova River. Only 35-40 km remained to the encircled grouping of Paulus. However, the plans of the enemy were never realized.

The formations of the 2nd Guards Army were already approaching the line of the Myshkov River, which delayed the further advance of the Kotelnikov group. On the morning of December 24, the 2nd Guards and 51st Armies went on the offensive. Breaking the resistance of the enemy, the Soviet troops successfully advanced and on December 29 cleared the city and the Kotelnikovo railway station from the Nazi troops. The army group "Goth" was defeated.

The German command was powerless to restore the front on the Volga. Moreover, during the December operations on the middle Don and in the Kotelnikovo area, the enemy suffered huge losses. Manstein's troops, having been defeated, retreated to southbound, for Manych.

By the beginning of January 1943. The Stalingrad Front was transformed into the Southern Front. His troops and the Northern Group of Forces of the Transcaucasian Front carried out offensive operations against the Nazi Group "A". The aggressive plans of the Nazi Reich failed on the entire southern wing of the Soviet-German front.

By the end of December 1942. the outer front moved 200-250 km away from the group surrounded by Stalingrad. The ring of Soviet troops directly covering the enemy constituted the internal front. The territory occupied by the enemy was 1400 sq. km.

The enemy, relying on a strong and deep defense, stubbornly resisted. The presence of airfields in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe “boiler” allowed him to receive aircraft. However, the doom of the encircled group every day became more and more obvious. The High Command of the Wehrmacht, despite the hopelessness of the resistance of the encircled group, continued to demand a fight "to the last soldier."

The Soviet Supreme High Command decided that the time had come for a final blow. For this purpose, a plan of operation was developed, which received the conditional name "Ring". Operation "Ring" was entrusted to the troops of the Don Front, commanded by K.K. Rokossovsky.

Soviet command January 8, 1943 presented an ultimatum to the troops of Paulus, in which they were asked to capitulate. The command of the encircled group, following Hitler's order, refused to accept the ultimatum.

January 10 at 8 a.m. 05 min. a volley of thousands of guns broke the silence of the frosty morning. The troops of the Don Front proceeded to the final liquidation of the enemy. The troops of the 65th, 21st, 24th, 64th, 57th, 66th and 62nd armies dismembered and destroyed the encircled group in parts. After three days of fierce fighting, the “Marinovsky ledge” of the enemy was cut off. The troops of the 65th and 21st armies reached the western bank of Rossoshka and the Karpovka area. The 57th and 64th armies crossed the line of the Chervlenaya River.

Discipline was falling in the enemy troops, panic moods increasingly arose in subunits and units.

On the morning of January 15, the attackers captured the Pitomnik airfield, where the meeting of the 65th and 24th armies took place. Paulus' headquarters moved from Gumrak even closer to Stalingrad. The total area of ​​the encirclement area was significantly preserved and now amounted to about 600 square meters. km.

On January 22, the troops of the Don Front stormed the enemy on the entire front. Thousands of guns and mortars paved the way for the advancing. In four days, the Soviet armies advanced another 10-15 km. The 21st Army captured Gumrak, an important stronghold of the Nazis.

The distance between the troops of the 21st and 65th armies was only 3.5 km. In the first half of the day on January 26, the armies united in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe village of "Red October" and on the slopes of the Mameva Kurgan. The encircled grouping was divided into two groups: the southern one, pinned down in the central part of the city, and the northern one, squeezed in the “Barricades” area.

On January 30, the troops of the 64th and 57th armies, having dismembered the enemy's southern grouping, approached the city center tightly. The 21st Army advanced from the northwest. January 31, the enemy was forced to lay down their arms.

It was necessary to force the enemy's northern group of troops to lay down their arms, as its commander, General Strekker, rejected the offer of surrender.

On February 1, powerful artillery and aviation strikes were brought down on the enemy in the morning. In many areas occupied by the Nazis, white flags appeared.

February 2, 1943 the northern group of troops, surrounded in the factory district of Stalingrad, also capitulated. Over 40 thousand German soldiers and officers led by General Strecker laid down their arms. fighting stopped on the banks of the Volga.

During the liquidation of the encircled grouping from January 10 to February 2, 1943. troops of the Don Front under the command of General K.K. Rokosovsky was defeated by 22 enemy divisions and over 160 reinforcement and maintenance units. 91 thousand Nazis, including over 2500 officers and 24 generals, were taken prisoner. In these battles, the enemy lost over 147 thousand. soldiers and officers.

In the winter of 1943, the German command began to actively prepare for the summer battles. The fascist German command decided to launch a major offensive operation in the summer of 1943 and once again seize the strategic initiative. The idea of ​​the operation was to encircle and destroy the Soviet troops in the Kursk ledge with powerful counter strikes from the Orel and Belgorod regions to Kursk. In the future, the enemy intended to defeat the Soviet troops in the Donbass. “For the implementation of the operation near Kursk, called the Citadel, the enemy concentrated huge forces and appointed the most experienced military leaders: 50 divisions, including. 16 tank, Army Group Center (commanded by Field Marshal G. Kluge) and Army Group South (commanded by Field Marshal E. Manstein). In total, over 900 thousand people, about 10 thousand guns and mortars, up to 2,700 tanks and assault guns, and more than 2,000 aircraft were part of the enemy strike groups. An important place in the enemy’s plan was given to the use of new military equipment - the Tiger and Panther tanks, as well as new aircraft (Focke-Wulf-190A fighters and Henschel-129 attack aircraft).

Having revealed the offensive plan of the fascist German command, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command decided to wear out and bleed the enemy's shock groupings with a deliberate defense, and then complete their complete defeat with a decisive counteroffensive. The defense of the Kursk ledge was assigned to the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts. Both fronts numbered more than 1.3 million people, up to 20 thousand guns and mortars, more than 3300 tanks and self-propelled guns, 2650 aircraft. “Troops of the Central Front (48th, 13th, 70th, 65th, 60th combined arms armies, 2nd tank army, 16th air army, 9th and 19th separate tank corps) under the command of General K.K. Rokossovsky were supposed to repel the enemy's offensive from the side of Orel. In front of the Voronezh Front (38th, 40th, 6th and 7th Guards, 69th Armies, 1st Tank Army, 2nd Air Army, 35th Guards Rifle Corps, 5th and 2nd Guards Tank Corps) , commanded by General N.F. Vatutin, the task was to repel the enemy’s offensive from Belgorod.” The Steppe Military District was deployed in the rear of the Kursk ledge (since July 9 - the Steppe Front: 4th and 5th Guards, 27th, 47th, 53rd armies, 5th Guards Tank Army, 5th Air Army, 1 rifle, 3 tank, 3 motorized, 3 cavalry corps), which was the strategic reserve of the Supreme Command Headquarters.

Enemy troops: in the Oryol-Kursk direction - the 9th and 2nd armies of the Army Group "Center" (50 divisions, including 16 tank and motorized divisions; commander - Field Marshal G. Kluge), in the Belgorod-Kursk direction - 4th Panzer Army and Operational Group "Kempf" of the Army Group "South" (commander - Field Marshal E. Manstein).

The commander of the central front considered Ponyri and Kursk the most probable direction of action for the main enemy forces, and Maloarkhangelsk and Gnilets as auxiliary ones. Therefore, he decided to concentrate the main forces of the front on the right wing. The decisive massing of forces and means in the direction of the expected enemy strike made it possible to create high densities in the zone of the 13th Army (32 km) - 94 guns and mortars, of which more than 30 anti-tank artillery guns, and about 9 tanks per 1 km of the front.

It was decided to concentrate the main forces in the center and on the left wing of the front. The armies of the first echelon received wide lines of defense. On the basis of our reconnaissance data and the testimonies of the prisoners, it was established that the enemy offensive would begin on July 5. On the morning of July 5, the Oryol grouping of the enemy, under the cover of artillery fire and with the support of aviation, went on the offensive, inflicting the main blow on Olkhovatka, and auxiliary ones on Maloarkhangelsk and Fatezh.

In the afternoon, the commander of the 13th Army, General N.P. Pukhov, advanced several tank and self-propelled artillery units and mobile barrier detachments to the main lane, and the front commander - howitzer and mortar brigades to the Olkhovatka area. The advance of the enemy was halted. On this day, fierce battles unfolded in the air. The 16th Air Army supported the fighting operations of the defending troops of the central front. By the end of the day, at the cost of huge losses, the enemy managed to advance 6-8 km in the Olkhovat direction. In other directions, his attacks were not successful.

Having determined the direction of the main efforts of the enemy, the front commander decided on the morning of July 6 to launch a counterattack from the Olkhovatka area to Gnilusha in order to restore the position of the 13th Army. As a result of the counterattack, the enemy was stopped in front of the second line of defense ... After the counterattack, the 2nd Panzer Army and the 19th Tank Corps went over to the defensive behind the second line.

On the same day, the enemy launched an offensive in the direction of Oboyan and Korocha. Having not achieved success in the Olkhovat direction, the enemy launched an offensive on Ponyri on the morning of July 7. When enemy units broke into the northwestern outskirts of the Ponyri station, the division commander, General M. A. Enshin concentrated artillery and mortar fire on them, then, with the forces of the second echelon and the attached tank brigade, launched a counterattack and restored the situation. On July 8 and 9, the enemy continued attacks on Olkhovatka and Ponyri, and on July 10 against the troops of the right flank of the 70th Army, but all his attempts to break through the second line of defense were thwarted. Having exhausted its reserves, the enemy was forced to abandon the offensive and on July 11 went on the defensive.

Against the troops of the Voronezh Front, the enemy launched a general offensive also on the morning of July 5, inflicting the main blow with the forces of the 4th Panzer Army on Oboyan, and the auxiliary operational group Kempf on Korocha. By the end of the day, the troops of this army had inflicted heavy losses on the enemy and stopped his attacks. The main strip of our defense was broken through only in separate sections. In the Korochan direction, the enemy managed to force the Northern Donets south of Belgorod and capture a small bridgehead.

In the current situation, the front commander decided to cover the Oboyan direction. To this end, on the night of July 6, he advanced to the second line of defense the 1st Tank Army of General M. E. Katukov, as well as the 5th and 2nd Guards Tank Corps, operationally subordinate to the 6th Guards Army. In addition, the army was reinforced by front-line artillery.

On the morning of July 6, the enemy resumed the offensive in all directions. Only by the end of the day did he manage to wedge into the second lane of our defense.

From July 9 to 11, the enemy brought additional reserves into the battle and at any cost sought to break through along the Belgorod highway to Kursk. To help the 6th Guards and 1st Tank Armies, the front command promptly put forward part of its artillery. In addition, the 10th Tank Corps was regrouped to cover the Oboyan direction and the main aviation forces were aimed, and the 5th Guards Tank Corps was regrouped to strengthen the right flank of the 1st Tank Army. “With the joint efforts of the ground forces and aviation, almost all enemy attacks were repulsed. Only on July 9, in the Kochetovka area, enemy tanks managed to break through to the third line of our defense. But two divisions of the 5th Guards Army of the Steppe Front and advanced tank brigades of the 5th Guards Tank Army were advanced against them, which stopped the advance of enemy tanks.”

In the offensive of the enemy, a crisis was clearly ripe. Therefore, Marshal A. M. Vasilevsky, chairman of the headquarters of the Supreme High Command, and General N. F. Vatutin, commander of the Voronezh Front, decided on the morning of July 12 to launch a counterattack from the Prokhorovka area with the forces of the 5th Guards Army, General A. S. Zhdanov and the 5th Guards Tank Army, General P. A. Rotmistrov, as well as the forces of the 6th Guards and 1st Tank Armies in the general direction to Yakovlevo with the aim of final defeat an infiltrated enemy group. From the air, the counterattack was to be provided by the main forces of the 2nd and 17th air armies.

On the morning of July 12, the troops of the Voronezh Front launched a counterattack. The main events unfolded in the area railway station Prokhorovka On both sides, up to 1200 tanks and self-propelled guns simultaneously participated in the battle. Aviation support of the enemy strike force was carried out by the aviation of the Army Group "South". Air strikes against the enemy were carried out by the 2nd Air Army, units of the 17th Air Army, and long-range aviation. Not having reached the intended goal - to capture Kursk from the southeast, the enemy went on the defensive.

July 12 came a turning point in the Battle of Kursk. By order of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, the troops of the Western and Bryansk fronts went on the offensive in the Oryol direction. The Hitlerite command was forced to abandon offensive plans and on July 16 began to withdraw its troops to their original position. The troops of the Voronezh, and from July 18 and the Steppe Fronts, proceeded to pursue the enemy, and by the end of July 23, they had mainly reached the line, which they occupied by the beginning of the defensive battle.

The Western Front received the task of delivering the main blow by the troops of the 11th Guards Army from the area southwest of Kozelsk to Khotynets, together with the 61st Army of the Bryansk Front, to encircle and destroy the Bolkhov grouping of the enemy. The Bryansk front was supposed to deliver the main blow by the troops of the 3rd and 63rd armies from the Novosil region to Orel, and the auxiliary one - by the forces of the 61st army to Bolkhov.

Central Front: Eliminate the enemy’s wedged grouping north of Olkhovatka, complete the defeat of the enemy. The combat operations of our troops were to be supported by more than 3 thousand aircraft of the 1st, 15th and 16th air armies (commanded by Generals M. M. Gromov, N. F. Naumenko, S I. Rudenko) of the Western, Bryansk and Central Fronts, as well as long-range aviation.

On the morning of July 12, after a powerful air and artillery preparation, the troops of the Western and Bryansk fronts went on the offensive. Success was achieved in the direction of the main attack of the Western Front. By the middle of the day, the troops of the 11th Guards Army broke through the enemy's main line of defense and crossed the Fomina River. In the afternoon of July 12, the 5th Panzer Corps was introduced into the battle, and by the middle of July 13, the breakthrough of the second line of its defense was completed.

After the completion of the breakthrough of the enemy’s tactical defense zone, the 5th Tank Corps and the 1st Tank Corps, introduced into the breakthrough to the right, together with the forward detachments of rifle formations, proceeded to pursue the enemy. By the morning of July 15, they reached the Vytebet River and crossed it, and by the end of the next day they cut the Bolkhov-Khotynets road. To delay their advance, the enemy pulled up reserves and launched a series of counterattacks.

Having repelled the enemy's counterattacks, the troops of the 11th Guards Army resumed the offensive and by July 19 advanced to 60 km, expanding the breakthrough to 120 km and covering the left flank of the enemy's Bolkhov grouping from the southwest.

In order to finally defeat the enemy and develop the offensive, in the middle of the day on July 26, the commander of the Western Front brought into battle in the band of the 11th Guards Army the 4th Tank Army transferred to him from the Stavka reserve (commander General V. M. Badanov).

The 4th Panzer Army, after a short artillery preparation with the support of aviation, went on the offensive against Bolkhov, and then struck at Khotynets and Karachev. In five days, she advanced 12 - 20 km. She had to break through the intermediate defensive lines previously occupied by enemy troops. On July 30, the troops of the left wing of the Western Front were transferred to the Bryansk Front.

The offensive of the Bryansk Front developed much more slowly than that of the Western Front. The troops of the 61st Army under the command of General P. A. Belov, together with the 20th Tank Corps, broke through the enemy’s defenses and, repelling his counterattacks, liberated Bolkhov on July 29.

In order to accelerate the defeat of the Oryol grouping of the enemy, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command transferred the 3rd Guards Tank Army (commander General P.S. Rybalko) from its reserve to the Bryansk Front. On the morning of July 19, she, with the support of formations of the 1st and 15th air armies and long-range aviation went on the offensive from the line of Bogdanovo, Podmaslovo and, having repelled strong enemy counterattacks, by the end of the day broke through his defenses on the Oleshnya River. On the night of July 20, the tank army struck in the direction of Otrada. On the morning of July 21, after a regrouping of forces, the army struck at the Stanovoi Kolodez and captured it on July 26. The next day, she was handed over to the Central Front.

By the end of July, the troops of three fronts engulfed the enemy's Oryol grouping from the north, east and south. The fascist German command, in an effort to avert the threat of encirclement, on July 30 began the withdrawal of all its troops from the Oryol bridgehead. The Soviet troops began to pursue. On the morning of August 4, the troops of the left wing of the Bryansk Front broke into Oryol and liberated it by the morning of August 5. On the same day, Belgorod was liberated by the troops of the Steppe Front.

Having mastered Orel, our troops continued the offensive. On August 18, they reached the line Zhizdra, Litizh. As a result of the Oryol operation, 14 enemy divisions were defeated (including 6 tank divisions)

The Belgorod-Kharkov bridgehead was defended by the 4th Panzer Army and the Kempf task force. They consisted of 18 divisions, including 4 tank divisions. Here the enemy created 7 defensive lines with a total depth of up to 90 km, as well as 1 bypass around Belgorod and 2 around Kharkov.

The idea of ​​​​the headquarters of the Supreme High Command was to cut the opposing enemy grouping into two parts with powerful blows from the troops of the adjacent wings of the Voronezh and steppe fronts, subsequently deeply cover it in the Kharkov region and destroy it in cooperation with the 57th Army of the Southwestern Front.

The troops of the Voronezh Front delivered the main blow with the forces of two combined arms and two tank armies from the area northeast of Tomarovka to Bogodukhov, Valki, bypassing Kharkov from the west, auxiliary, also by the forces of two combined arms armies, from the Proletarsky area in the direction of Boromlya, in order to cover the main groups from the West.

The steppe front under the command of General I. S. Konev delivered the main blow by the troops of the 53rd and part of the forces of the 69th army from the area northwest of Belgorod to Kharkov from the north, the auxiliary - by the forces of the 7th Guards Army from the area southeast of Belgorod to western direction.

By decision of the commander of the Southwestern Front, General R. Ya. Malinovsky, the 57th Army launched a strike from the Martovaya area to Merefa, covering Kharkov from the southeast.

“From the air, the offensive of the troops of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts was provided, respectively, by the 2nd and 5th air armies of generals S. A. Krasovsky and S. K. Goryunov. their main strikes, which made it possible to create high operational densities. So, in the zone of the 5th Guards Army of the Voronezh Front, they reached 1.5 km per rifle division, 230 guns and mortars and 70 tanks and self-propelled guns per 1 km of the front.

For aviation support of each tank army, one assault and one fighter aviation division was allocated. “From July 28 to August 6, the 38th Army, operating on the right wing of the Voronezh Front, simulated the concentration of a large group of troops in the Sumy direction. The fascist German command not only began bombing the areas of false concentration of troops, but also kept a significant number of its reserves in this direction.

On August 3, after powerful artillery preparation and air strikes, the troops of the fronts, supported by a barrage of fire, went on the offensive and successfully broke through the first position of the enemy. With the introduction of the second echelons of regiments into battle, the second position was broken through. To build up the efforts of the 5th Guards Army, advanced tank brigades of the corps of the first echelon of tank armies were brought into battle. They, together with rifle divisions, completed the breakthrough of the enemy's main line of defense. Following the advanced brigades, the main forces of the tank armies were brought into battle. By the end of the day, they overcame the second line of enemy defense and advanced 12-26 km deep, thereby separating the enemy's Tomarovsk and Belgorod centers of resistance.

Simultaneously with the tank armies, the following were introduced into the battle: in the zone of the 6th Guards Army - the 5th Guards Tank Corps, and in the zone of the 53rd Army - the 1st Mechanized Corps. They, together with rifle formations, broke the enemy's resistance, completed the breakthrough of the main line of defense, and by the end of the day approached the second defensive line. Having broken through the tactical defense zone and defeated the nearest operational reserves, the main strike force of the Voronezh Front, on the morning of the second day of the operation, proceeded to pursue the enemy.

On August 4, the troops of the 1st Panzer Army from the Tomarovka region began to develop an offensive to the south. Its 6th tank and 3rd mechanized corps, by the middle of the day on August 6, advanced 70 km. In the afternoon of the next day, the 6th Panzer Corps liberated Bogodukhov.

The 5th Guards Tank Army, bypassing enemy resistance centers from the west, attacked Zolochev and broke into the city on August 6.

By this time, the troops of the 6th Guards Army had captured the enemy's defense center Tomarovka, surrounded and destroyed his Borisov group. The 4th and 5th Guards Tank Corps played a major role in this. Developing the offensive in a southwestern direction, they bypassed the Borisov group of Germans from the west and east, and on August 7, with a swift blow on the move, they broke into Grayvoron, thereby cutting off the enemy's escape route to the west and south. The troops of the Steppe Front, having completed the breakthrough of the tactical defense zone of the enemy on August 4, by the end of the next day took Belgorod by storm, after which they began to develop an offensive against Kharkov. By the end of August 7, the front of the breakthrough of our troops reached 120 km. Panzer armies advanced to a depth of up to 100 km, and combined arms - up to 60 - 65 km.

“The troops of the 40th and 27th armies, continuing to develop the offensive, by August 11 reached the line of Bromlya, Trostyanets, Akhtyrka. A company of the 12th Guards Tank Brigade, led by Captain I. A. Tereshchuk, broke into Akhtyrka on August 10, where it was surrounded by the enemy. For two days, Soviet tankers, without communication with the brigade, were in besieged tanks, repulsing the fierce attacks of the Nazis, who were trying to capture them alive. In two days of fighting, the company destroyed 6 tanks, 2 self-propelled guns, 5 armored cars and up to 150 enemy soldiers and officers. With two surviving tanks, Captain Tereshchuk fought out of the encirclement and returned to his brigade. For decisive and skillful actions in battle, Captain I. A. Tereshchuk was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.”

By August 10, the main forces of the 1st Panzer Army had reached the line of the Merchik River. The 5th Guards Tank Army was reassigned to the Steppe Front and began to regroup in the Bogodukhov area.

Advancing behind the tank armies, the troops of the 6th Guards Army reached the northeast of Krasnokutsk by August 11, and the 5th Guards Army captured Kharkov from the west. The troops of the Steppe Front by this time approached the outer defensive contour of Kharkov from the north, and the 57th Army, transferred to this front on August 8, from the east and southeast.

By August 11, the fascist German command had concentrated three tank divisions east of Bogodukhov (Reich, Dead Head, Viking) and on the morning of August 12 launched a counterattack on the advancing troops of the 1st Panzer Army in the general direction of Bogodukhov. An oncoming tank battle unfolded, but could not break through to Bogodukhov. On the morning of August 13, the main forces of the 5th Guards Tank, 6th and 5th Guards Armies were brought into battle. The main forces were sent here front-line aviation. She conducted reconnaissance and carried out operations to disrupt the railway and road transport of the Nazis. By the end of August 17, our troops finally thwarted the enemy's counterattack from the south to Bogodukhov.

Then the troops of the right wing of the Voronezh Front struck at the rear of the Akhtyrskaya group of Germans and completely defeated it.

The troops of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts defeated 15 enemy divisions, advanced 140 km to the south and south-west, came close to the enemy's Donbass grouping. Soviet troops liberated Kharkov. During the occupation and fighting, the Nazis destroyed in the city and region (according to incomplete data) about 300 thousand civilians and prisoners of war, about 160 thousand people were driven to Germany, destroyed 1600 thousand m2 of housing, over 500 industrial enterprises, all cultural and educational , medical and communal institutions.

Thus, the Soviet troops completed the defeat of the entire Belgorod-Kharkov enemy grouping and took an advantageous position to go on a general offensive in order to liberate the Left-Bank Ukraine and Donbass.

The counteroffensive of the Red Army near Kursk ended for us with an outstanding victory. Irreparable losses were inflicted on the enemy, and all his attempts to hold strategic footholds in the Orel and Kharkov regions were frustrated. For heroism shown in battles, over 100 thousand Soviet soldiers were awarded orders and medals, 60 people. were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, among them fighter pilots senior lieutenants A.K. Gorodets and A.P. Maresyev, captain L.A. Belgium, Sergeant S.P. Zorin and many others.

Victory at Kursk and the exit of Soviet troops to the Dnieper completed a radical change in the course of the Great Patriotic War and the entire Second World War. The balance of power changed dramatically in favor of the Red Army. After the battle on the Kursk Bulge, the Nazi command was forced to completely abandon the offensive strategy and go over to the defensive on the entire Soviet-German front. The Red Army firmly seized the strategic initiative in the conduct of military operations.

The Battle of Kursk demonstrated to the whole world the ability of the Soviet Union and its Red Army to defeat fascist Germany and its allies on their own. The front of the national liberation struggle of the peoples of Europe expanded and became more active. The victory at the Kursk Salient was of great international significance: it raised even higher the prestige of the Soviet Union as the decisive force in the Second World War. The Soviet state demonstrated its invincible might.

After the victorious end Battle of Kursk Soviet troops in September 1943 began the heroic battle for the Dnieper. The most important task was to force the river, seize bridgeheads for the subsequent offensive and liberation of the Right-Bank Ukraine.

As far back as the summer, the fascist command had taken measures to create the so-called “ Eastern shaft”, which was declared impregnable. However, the Nazis failed to gain a foothold at the turn of the Dnieper.

On September 15, the fascist German command issued an order for a general withdrawal of the troops of Army Group South to the Melitopol-Dnepr line. The retreat beyond the Dnieper and Molochnaya, to the Eastern Wall, was to be carried out by all the troops of Army Group South. The decision to withdraw troops north of Kiev from the Desna to the Dnieper was made dependent on the further development of events.

The armies defending in Ukraine received new tasks. The 4th Panzer Army retreated to the line of the Desna and the Dnieper: the left flank - to Chernigov, and the right - to the crossings at Kanev. At the same time, the army commander was pointed out the particular importance of preventing the breakthrough of Soviet tank formations into the Kiev region. The 8th Army retreated to the line of the Dnieper and was supposed to cross it between Tripoli (40 km southeast of Kiev) and Kremenchug. The 1st Panzer Army was ordered to retreat to the Dnieper in the strip from Kremenchug to Zaporozhye. She was ordered to hold a bridgehead at Zaporozhye. The 6th Army, retreating, was to take up positions on the Molochnaya River and in front of the Melitopol-Zaporozhye railway.

The ultimate goal of the planned retreat was considered to be the holding of a defensive line on the Dnieper, which intercepted the offensive paths of the Soviet Army in the main strategic directions. Withdrawing troops from the left-bank Ukraine, the Nazi command carried out a plan for the complete devastation of the abandoned territory. The SS units and the police took an active part in the total devastation of the abandoned areas ... Himmler set the task of destroying the Donbass on September 7th. Thus, in mid-September, the fascist German command was forced to admit the collapse of its plans to stabilize the front line on the lines, which were occupied by the end of the Battle of Kursk, and go on a deep retreat of the Wehrmacht. The question of the liberation of the Left-bank Ukraine was already a foregone conclusion.

“The Soviet Supreme High Command clearly understood the great importance of the Dnieper for the retreating enemy, and did everything to ensure that the Soviet troops crossed it on the move, seized bridgeheads on the right bank and did not allow the enemy to gain a foothold on this line. The primary task was to prevent the planned withdrawal of Wehrmacht formations beyond the Dnieper, to deprive him of the opportunity to stop the offensive of the Soviet Army. In the middle and in the second half of September, the main efforts of the Soviet troops advancing on the Left-Bank Ukraine were directed to the solution of this problem. The question of the time and pace of the offensive acquired exceptional importance.”

The command of the fronts and armies had to organize the pursuit in difficult conditions. In early September, all five tank armies had to be withdrawn to the reserve of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command for understaffing. Separate tank and mechanized corps were also weakened. By the beginning of the withdrawal of the Nazis, there were no strong mobile formations and formations in the fronts. The enemy had greater mobility than the advancing Soviet troops. As we moved towards the Dnieper, the activity of Soviet aviation decreased due to the difficulties of relocating it to new airfields.

Nevertheless, the Soviet Supreme High Command sought to speed up the advance of troops to the Dnieper. This made it possible to reach the Dnieper on a wide front and thwart the plan of the fascist command to make the Eastern Wall impregnable. The implementation of a systematic retreat from the Left-Bank Ukraine and the organization of a strong defense on the Dnieper posed difficult tasks for the Wehrmacht. In the second half of September, the pace and scope of the offensive of the Soviet troops continued to grow. It developed most successfully in the zone of the Central and Voronezh fronts, reinforced by the reserves of the Stavka, in the Kiev and Gomel directions. The gap in the front at the junction of Army Groups "Center" and "South" was expanding more and more. The efforts of the fascist German command to restore direct communication between them did not lead to success.

The troops of the right wing of the Central Front crossed the Desna and on September 16 liberated Novgorod-Seversky. The German defense on the Desna collapsed, and the Wehrmacht command could no longer, relying on this defensive line, strike at the flank and rear of the Soviet troops advancing in the Gomel and Kiev directions. The troops of the left wing of the Central Front continued to develop the offensive towards the Dnieper. On the night of September 19, troops of the Central Front crossed the Desna east and southwest of Chernigov. Having captured bridgeheads on the right bank, the main forces of the 13th Army continued to develop the offensive to the Dnieper, and part of the forces bypassed Chernigov from the east and west. Formations of the 61st Army and the 7th Guards Cavalry Corps advanced towards the city from the northeast.

On September 21, Soviet troops, with strikes from the east, south and west, defeated the Nazi formations defending Chernigov and liberated this regional center of Ukraine - the most important stronghold of the German defense in the lower reaches of the Desna, 40 km from the Dnieper. Their defense, prepared along the western bank, was overcome along the entire Desna. Ten formations and units of the 13th, 61st, 16th air armies were given the honorary name of Chernigov by order of the Supreme Commander.

The offensive of the Central Front continued to develop successfully. The German fascist formations, trying to get out of the blows, hastily retreated beyond the Dnieper. On September 21, the advanced units of the left wing of the front reached the Dnieper north of Kyiv. However, overcoming a powerful water barrier presented great difficulties. The advanced units reached the Dnieper without regular crossing facilities, the rear fell far behind. By the time the Soviet Army reached the Dnieper, the enemy did not have time to complete the construction defensive structures and fully prepare a defensive line on its right bank. However, he fiercely resisted the Soviet troops that had come to the river.

The troops of the 13th Army of General N.P. Pukhov were the first to cross the Dnieper in the Mnevo sector, the mouth of the Pripyat River. Its forward detachments reached the river on September 21 and the next day captured a bridgehead on the right bank. Forcing was carried out on improvised means under strong blows from enemy aircraft.

After the forward detachments clung to the right bank of the Dnieper, a special pontoon technique was set in motion.

By the end of September 22, the 13th Army had captured a bridgehead 25 km along the front and from 2 to 10 km in depth and reached the line of Mnevo, Lukoedy, Upper Zhary, Teremtsy, the mouth of the Pripyat. The next day, she advanced up to 35 km west of the Dnieper and captured a bridgehead on the right bank of the Pripyat at its mouth.

The offensive of the troops of the right wing and the center of the Voronezh Front, the Steppe, South-Western and southern fronts. In an effort to make fuller use of the results achieved, on September 25, the Headquarters demanded that the commanders of the fronts, with the release of their armies to the Dnieper, “immediately force it on a wide front in order to disperse the attention and forces of the enemy. Move anti-aircraft weapons to the crossings to reliably protect them from enemy air strikes” 3 .

From September 24 to 30, fierce battles were fought between the formations of the 13th Army and the Nazi troops in the interfluve of the Dnieper and Pripyat. The Nazis pulled up parts of four tank divisions here and with stubborn counterattacks tried to push the Soviet troops back to the eastern coast. Overcoming the enemy's fierce resistance, the formations of the 13th Army continued to expand the bridgehead and by the end of September not only cleared the enemy from the interfluve of the Dnieper and Pripyat in the Ma-shev area, but also captured bridgeheads on Pripyat: one - northwest of Chernobyl (length up to 19 km , up to 10 km deep), the second - southeast of this city (10 km along the front, up to 8 km deep).

South of the 13th Army, the 60th Army and the 7th Guards Mechanized Corps successfully crossed the Dnieper. By the end of September, they captured a bridgehead 20 km along the front and 12 km deep on the western bank of the Dnieper - from the mouth of the Pripyat to the Teterev River - and a small bridgehead in the Yasnogorodka area. To the north of the 13th Army, the 61st Army crossed the Dnieper with part of its forces.

By the end of September, the Central Front, in cooperation with other fronts, achieved a major operational success. Pursuing the enemy, his troops crossed the Dnieper, Pripyat and Sozh on the move and captured several bridgeheads on their western banks, which played a big role in the subsequent struggle to capture the border of the Dnieper and in defeating the enemy in Right-Bank Ukraine.

Since September 19, the resistance of the Nazis in the Voronezh Front has sharply weakened. Taking into account the current situation, General N.F. Vatutin demanded to develop the offensive to the Dnieper at a higher pace and force it on the move. In solving this problem, an important role was assigned to the mobile group of the front. It included the 3rd Guards Tank Army and the 1st Guards Cavalry Corps, transferred to the Voronezh Front from the Stavka reserve. By September 19, they concentrated in the Romny area and on the night of the 20th launched an offensive in the direction of Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky.

The pace of the advance of the troops of the right wing and the center of the Voronezh Front increased sharply. “In the offensive zone of the 40th Army, one of the first to reach the Dnieper in the Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky region was the forward detachment of the 309th rifle division of General D. F. Dremin.

In those days, the country learned about the courage of the Komsomol members V. N. Ivanov, N. E. Petukhov, I. D. Semenov and V. A. Sysolyatin. They were the first to cross the Dnieper and ensured the crossing of the river by units of the 51st Guards Tank Brigade. For the valor and military skill shown during the crossing and in the battles for the bridgehead on the right bank, Komsomol patriots received the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Guards Private Nikolai Petukhov was awarded this title posthumously.”

While fighting was going on to expand the Bukrinsky bridgehead, the formations of the 38th Army of General N. E. Chibisov began to force the Dnieper in the Lyutezh area. By the end of September 29, they captured a bridgehead up to 8 km along the front and up to 1 km in depth, and by October 10, the bridgehead was expanded to 15 km along the front and up to 5-10 km in depth.

By the time the Soviet troops reached the Dnieper in the offensive zone of the left wing of the Central Front, the right wing and the center of the Voronezh Front, the fascist German command had only seven infantry and three tank divisions on the right bank of the Dnieper, exhausted by the previous battles, and they had not yet had time to turn around for defense . Enemy formations that had not been withdrawn by September 22 from the Left-Bank Ukraine were subjected to crushing blows from the Soviet armies.

From September 22 to 30, the troops of the Voronezh Front fought for bridgeheads on the right bank of the Dnieper and cleared the left bank of the remaining enemy units. After tense fighting, the 38th Army liquidated an important Nazi bridgehead in the Darnitsa region (a suburb of Kiev on the left bank of the Dnieper), on which seven German divisions defended. During the crossing of the river, fierce air battles unfolded. They were especially tense in the area of ​​​​the Bukrinsky bridgehead.

By the end of September, the armies of the Voronezh Front captured nine small bridgeheads north and south of Kyiv, including Bukrinsky and Lyutezhsky. This largely violated the enemy defenses on the right bank of the Dnieper.

At the same time, the fascist German command hastily deployed on the right bank, especially in the region of Kiev, divisions and reserves that had crossed over.

The formations of the Steppe Front by September 20 were fighting 70-120 km from the Dnieper. Under their up to 20 divisions of the 8th and 1st tank armies retreated under pressure. The right wing of the front - the 5th Guards and 53rd armies - covered Poltava from the north and south and had the task of liberating this large regional center of Ukraine. The 69th and 7th Guards Armies advanced in the center of the front.

On September 20, General I. S. Konev set the task of pursuing the retreating enemy, defeating the Nazi formations in the Kremenchug and Dneprodzerzhinsk directions, and on the move to force the Dnieper, seize bridgeheads on the right bank. The forcing of the Dnieper was planned on a front 130 km long.

After stubborn fighting, by the morning of September 23, the 5th Guards and 53rd armies of the Steppe Front liberated the city of Russian glory Poltava, turned fascist german invaders into a powerful defensive base. From September 25 to 30, the troops of the Steppe Front in their entire offensive zone reached the Dnieper, cleared the left bank and captured five bridgeheads on the right bank. A major role in the successful forcing of the Dnieper was played by the entry into battle of the 37th Army.

On September 22, the troops of the right wing of the Southwestern Front reached the Dnieper south of Dnepropetrovsk and, having forced it on September 25, captured small bridgeheads on the right bank. On September 22, the troops of the left wing of the front reached the outer contour of the Zaporozhye bridgehead of the enemy. The troops of the Southern Front on the same day approached the defensive line on Molochnaya. The liberation of Donbass, the withdrawal of the Soviet Army to the Zaporozhye region, to Molochnaya and the capture of bridgeheads on the right bank of the Dnieper marked the end of an important stage in the long and intense struggle of the Southwestern and Southern fronts to defeat a large enemy grouping in southern Ukraine. The exit of the Soviet Army to the Dnieper and Molochnaya created a serious threat to the Nazi defense in the lower reaches of the Dnieper and on the outskirts of the Crimea. The victory of the South-Western and Southern fronts changed the military-political situation in the Black Sea basin and influenced the policy of the states of this region. Its economic importance was also great. The most important coal and metallurgical base of the South, the richest agricultural region, was returned to the Soviet country.

To the north, on the middle Dnieper, the Nazi troops continued to fight fiercely, trying to destroy the Soviet units that had crossed to the right bank.

As a result of the offensive of five fronts closely interacting with each other during August - September 1943, outstanding successes were achieved in the southwestern direction. Soviet troops advanced 250-300 km, forcing a number of rivers during the offensive. By the end of September, they reached the Dnieper on a 700-kilometer front - from Loev to Zaporozhye. The aggressor suffered a heavy defeat in the Left-Bank Ukraine. His 2nd, 4th tank, 8th, 1st tank, 6th armies suffered heavy losses. Millions of Soviet people were rescued from fascist slavery. The invaders lost the most important economic regions.

The Soviet soldiers were not stopped by such a powerful water barrier as the Dnieper. The rapid withdrawal of Soviet troops on a broad front to the Dnieper was unexpected for the Nazi command. The Soviet Army achieved strategic surprise, using which the troops captured 23 bridgeheads on the western bank of the Dnieper and two bridgeheads on the Pripyat.

The outstanding victories of the five fronts in the southwestern direction are the merit of all branches of the armed forces and combat arms. Forcing the Dnieper on the move using improvised means after heavy offensive battles is an unprecedented feat of arms in the history of wars

The Soviet-German front continued to be the main, decisive front of World War II. In the battles that took place here, the main forces of the Wehrmacht and the armies of Germany's satellites were crushed. The victorious offensive of the Soviet troops in 1943 radically changed the strategic situation on the Soviet-German front, had a decisive influence on the further course of the entire Second World War, leading to the collapse of the fascist bloc. After the defeats suffered in the East, Nazi Germany was forced to switch to strategic defense on all fronts.

As a result of the victory in the Battle of Kursk, as well as the entry of Soviet troops to the Dnieper, a radical turning point ended not only in the course of the Great Patriotic War, but also in the Second World War as a whole. Decisive, irreversible shifts have taken place in the correlation of forces between the belligerent coalitions in the military, political and economic fields, and in the strategic situation in the theaters of operations.

The outstanding victories of the Red Army during the summer-autumn campaign of 1943 embodied the results of the heroic labor of the Soviet people to strengthen and further develop the military might of the country. A tense struggle was already waged in conditions of general superiority in forces and means over the enemy. The Soviet Armed Forces had in sufficient quantities the most advanced equipment for that time, had rich combat experience, and outnumbered the enemy in the number of tanks, aircraft and artillery.

The rapid rise of the military economy made it possible for the Soviet command to carry out a significant quantitative and qualitative build-up of the forces of the army in the field. The enemy was faced with the need to fight with more powerful groupings of Soviet troops than in the previous stages of the war. During the attack on Kursk, the German armies faced such a strong defense that they had not met before either on the Soviet-German front or in other theaters of the Second World War. A particularly sharp increase in the efforts of the Red Army and an increase in the scope of the struggle occurred from the moment the Soviet troops went over to the counteroffensive, and then to the general strategic offensive.

If in the counteroffensive near Moscow, Soviet aviation numbered 1 thousand aircraft, then in the counteroffensive near Kursk - already 4300. V the counteroffensive near Stalingrad, the troops had 15.5 thousand guns and mortars, and in the counteroffensive near Kursk - 33 thousand.

In the battle of Kursk, the fascist German command for the first time met the Soviet tank forces united in tank armies of the new organization. The growth of the power of the armored forces of the Red Army proceeded at a rapid pace. If 1500 tanks participated in the counteroffensive near Stalingrad, then more than 4.8 thousand tanks and self-propelled guns took part in the counteroffensive near Kursk.

The struggle on the Soviet-German front acquired even greater scope during the general offensive of the Red Army in the summer-autumn campaign of 1943. 53 combined arms, 5 tank and 9 air armies took part in it.

In the combat operations of the Soviet troops in the summer of 1943, a qualitatively new phenomenon was the widespread use technical means struggle, primarily tank and mechanized formations and associations. Their massing in the direction of the main attack gave offensive operations a decisive and maneuverable character, and made it possible to conduct an offensive at a high pace and to great depths. A major role in the armed struggle belonged to the quantitatively and qualitatively increased Soviet aviation. She won air supremacy and firmly held it until the end of the war.

The scope of the struggle imposed on the enemy exceeded the material and moral capabilities of the Wehrmacht. The collapse of the offensive strategy of the fascist German army, and then the crisis of its defensive strategy, became inevitable.

1. Zhukov G.K. Memories and reflections. T.2. M., 1974.

2. Collection of materials on the history of military art in the Great Patriotic War. Issue 5. V.2.//Edited by A.I. Gotovtseva. M., 1955.

3. The Soviet Union during the Great Patriotic War // Ed. A.M. Samsonov. M., 1985.

4. History of military art. // Ed. THEIR. Bagramyan. M., 1970.

5. Great Patriotic War. 1941-1945. Events. People. Documentation. // Ed. O.A. Rzheshevsky. M., 1990.

6. History of the USSR.//Ed. S.A. Seraeva. M., 1983.

7. History of the Second World War 1939-1945. T.6. A turning point in the war. M., 1976.

8. History of the Second World War 1939-1945. T.7. Completion of a radical change in the war. M., 1976.

History of the Second World War 1939-1945. T. 6. A radical change in the war. M., 1976. S. 19.

There. pp. 43-44.

History of the Second World War 1939-1945. T. 6. M., 1976. S. 45.

Great Patriotic War 1941-1945. Events. People. Documentation. Brief historical reference book / Under. ed. O. A. Rzheshevsky. M., 1990. S. 16.

Zhukov G.K. Memories and reflections. v.2. M., 1974. P. 157.

Great Patriotic War 1941-1945. Events. People. Documents: Brief historical reference book//Edited by O.A. Rzheshevsky.-M., 1990 p. 153

History of military art. Textbook for higher military educational institutions.// Under. ed. I. Kh. Bagramyan. M., 1970. S. 219.

There. P.224.

Same place.S. 225.

There. P.226.

History of the Second World War 1939-1945. T.7. Completion of a radical change in the war. M., 1976. S. 206.

Battle for the Caucasus. In the summer of 1942, a catastrophic situation for the Red Army developed in the North Caucasus. After the fall of Rostov-on-Don, the road for the Germans to the south was open, since there were no fortifications on this sector of the front. As a result, despite the fierce resistance of the Soviet troops, in just a few days the enemy troops reached the Caucasus Range. Their goal was the oil of Maykop, Grozny and Baku, as well as the capture of Transcaucasia. Hitler declared that without Caucasian oil he would not be able to continue the war.

But, having mobilized all the possibilities and forces, the Red Army managed to stop the enemy.

The defeat of German troops near Stalingrad. By the autumn of 1942, the balance of power on the Soviet-German front gradually began to change in favor of the Red Army. By this time, the enemy had suffered huge losses in the Stalingrad and North Caucasian directions and was forced to go on the defensive.

The Soviet command sought to achieve a final turning point in the situation in its favor. The Stalingrad Front was chosen as the direction of the main attack. The plan for the defeat of the Germans near Stalingrad (it was developed by the Deputy Supreme Commander G.K. Zhukov and the head General Staff A. M. Vasilevsky) received the code name "Uranus". He proposed using the forces of the Southwestern and Stalingrad fronts to strike at the Germans in converging directions with the aim of encircling them in the interfluve of the Volga and Don and completely defeating them. To carry out this plan, a double superiority over the enemy was ensured.

On November 19, 1942, Soviet artillery dealt a powerful blow to the enemy, after which a tank attack began. On the fifth day of fierce fighting, the troops of the two fronts joined in the area of ​​​​the city of Kalach. As a result, the 6th and 4th tank armies of the Germans were surrounded. The total number of encircled enemy soldiers and officers was 330 thousand people. Attempts by the Germans to get out of the encirclement were unsuccessful. On February 2, 1943, the encircled enemy group capitulated. Its commander, Field Marshal Paulus himself, was also captured.

In total, near Stalingrad, the Germans lost 800 thousand people, 2 thousand tanks and assault guns, 3 thousand aircraft.

The victory of the Red Army near Stalingrad marked the beginning of a radical turning point in the course of not only the Great Patriotic War, but the entire Second World War. The strategic initiative finally passed to our army.

Beginning of liberation. The victory at Stalingrad was the beginning of the mass expulsion of the enemy from Soviet soil. Fearing a new encirclement, the Germans hastily withdrew their troops from the North Caucasus.

January 18, 1943 i. search of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts managed to partially break through the blockade of Lepit Rada. In February 1943, the liberation of the eastern Donbass began. At the same time, as a result of a powerful offensive by the troops of the Voronezh Front on the Upper Don, three enemy armies were defeated and the Kursk Bulge was formed, deeply wedged into German positions. It was here that both sides planned to launch the summer campaign.

In total, during the winter offensive, the Red Army managed to defeat more than a hundred enemy divisions.

The Battle of Kursk. A series of military defeats greatly bled the German army. Hitler ordered the start of a "total" (general) mobilization, during which another 2 million soldiers and officers were drafted into the army. German divisions from European countries were also transferred to the Eastern Front, where there was still no second front. In total, up to 50 enemy divisions were concentrated near Kursk. Tank armies were armed with new types of equipment - tanks "Tiger" and "Panther", assault guns "Ferdinand". The German plan of operation ("Citadel") provided for the encirclement of Soviet troops and their destruction by German troops from the north and south.

The Soviet command, at the suggestion of G.K. Zhukov, decided to switch to active defense in order, after exhausting the enemy, to bring down on him the entire force of the main and reserve troops. Moreover, for this operation, the Headquarters ensured a significant superiority over the enemy in manpower and equipment.

The Germans were going to use the element of surprise again. It was supposed to start the offensive on July 5 at 3 o'clock in the morning with strong artillery preparation. However, Soviet intelligence accurately determined the day and hour of the start of the offensive, after which the commander of the Central Front, K. K. Rokossovsky, decided on a preemptive strike. A few minutes before the start of the German offensive, almost 19,000 Soviet guns dealt a crushing blow to the places where the prepared German troops were concentrated. As a result, the enemy suffered heavy losses and was able to launch an offensive only a few hours later, and with all his reserves put into action. The Germans were able to advance only 30 - 35 km.

On July 12, Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive. On the same day, the largest oncoming tank battle in world history took place near the village of Prokhorovka, in which 1,200 tanks and self-propelled guns took part. In the course of the entire Battle of Kursk, a turning point came on that day. The Germans were forced to go on the defensive.

Going on the offensive, the Red Army liberated Belgorod and Orel on August 5. By order of Stalin, the first victorious salute in the history of the Great Patriotic War was fired in Moscow.

In the Battle of Kursk, the Germans lost 500 thousand soldiers and officers, 1.5 thousand tanks, 3.7 thousand aircraft. The blow of the advancing Soviet troops was so strong that in a short time managed to liberate Kharkov, Donbass, Taman Peninsula, Bryansk, Smolensk from the enemy.

From mid-September, an unprecedented battle for the Dnieper began. On its steep right bank, the Germans erected a fortification system (“Eastern Wall”), which, in their opinion, made it impregnable. Hitler said with pathos that "the Dnieper would rather flow back than the Russians would overcome it."

However, the Eastern Wall could not stop the Soviet soldier - on November 6, Kyiv was liberated, and the Dnieper was forced in most directions. For the heroism shown in forcing this barrier, 2438 soldiers who were the first to enter the right bank of the Dnieper were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

At the same time, a significant grouping of German troops was "locked" in the Crimea.

The radical change in the course of the war was fixed.

Tehran Conference. The success of the Red Army in the Roma of a common enemy was supplemented by the landing of allied Anglo-American troops in Italy at the end of July 1943. However, the Soviet leadership was waiting for the fulfillment of the main promise of the allies - the landing of their troops in France, which would significantly speed up the victory over Germany. In November - December 1943, a meeting of the leaders of the USSR, the USA and England ("the big three") took place in Tehran. Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill agreed on the opening of a second front in Europe in May - June 1944, on the creation of the United Nations after the war, on the post-war world order, on the fate of Germany after its military defeat, etc. The USSR promised to enter the war against Japan after the end of the war in Europe.

The results of the second period of the war. From the beginning of the counter-offensive of the Red Army near Stalingrad and until the end of 1943, Germany lost more than 2.2 million people, 3.5 thousand tanks, about 7 thousand aircraft. Only in the summer - autumn of 1943, the Germans lost more than half of all their troops on the Eastern Front.

german army was on the verge of a military disaster.

By the end of 1943, Soviet troops had liberated almost half of all territories occupied by the enemy.

However, the enemy was still too strong to consider the war already over. There was still a serious and long struggle ahead, but its outcome was in many respects already a foregone conclusion.

Thus, near Stalingrad began, and after the Battle of Kursk ended a radical change in the course of the Great Patriotic War and the entire Second World War.

DOCUMENT

Russian history. XX - beginning of the XXI century. Grade 9 Volobuev Oleg Vladimirovich

§ 28

BATTLE OF STALINGRAD. August 23, 1942 german tanks dissected Stalingrad defense and went to the Volga. At the same time, the main enemy forces went on the offensive. Aviation subjected the city to massive bombardments. The Germans broke into the city. For more than two months, fierce battles were fought around the clock for every street, house, every meter of land.

The Nazi command sought to take the city at any cost. The enemy advanced furiously. September 13, 14 and 15 became the hardest days for the Stalingraders. The enemy was getting closer and closer to the Volga. The turning point these days was created by the 13th Guards Division of General A. I. Rodimtsev. Having crossed the Volga, she attacked the enemy, who did not expect this blow. At the same time, aviation provided assistance to the Stalingraders. The enemy offensive was suspended.

The counteroffensive of the Soviet troops began on November 19, 1942 with a powerful blow to the flanks of the advancing enemy grouping. The enemy was demoralized and began to retreat rapidly. The simultaneous offensive of the fronts with the massive use of aviation, artillery and tanks allowed the Soviet troops to close the encirclement ring, in which the enemy grouping of 330 thousand people turned out to be. The enemy made an attempt to break through the blockade, sending 13 divisions for this under the command of one of his best generals, Field Marshal E. Manstein. But this attempt was thwarted.

In an effort to prevent bloodshed, the Soviet command offered to capitulate the enemy group surrounded in Stalingrad. When this did not follow, the troops of the Don Front began an operation to destroy it. On February 2, 1943, the defeat of a group of enemy troops was completed. Its commander, Field Marshal F. Paulus, together with the remnants of his army, surrendered.

lend-lease

Battle of Stalingrad began on May 17, 1942 and ended on February 2, 1943. During these 200 days, the Nazis lost about 1.5 million people killed, wounded and captured. The Stalingrad operation was carried out by representatives of the Headquarters G.K. Zhukov, A.M. Vasilevsky, front commanders K.K. Rokossovsky, A.I. Eremenko, dozens of generals, hundreds of officers and hundreds of thousands of ordinary soldiers.

The operation near Stalingrad developed into a general strategic offensive, which continued until the end of March 1943.

The victory at Stalingrad put the beginning of a radical fracture during the Great Patriotic War and the entire Second World War.

HELP OF THE ALLIES. A certain help in providing the Red Army with equipment, weapons and food was supplies from the United States of America through lend-lease(U.S. loan or lease system military equipment, weapons, ammunition, equipment, strategic raw materials and food to the countries - allies in anti-Hitler coalition during World War II). The help of the allies was necessary, especially in the initial period of the war, until the losses were made up due to the enemy’s occupation of a vast territory with the most important defense and industrial centers, and while perestroika was underway National economy in a military way. But it amounted to only 4% of the volume of Soviet production, and a lot of money had to be paid for it.

Capitulation of German troops near Stalingrad. Field Marshal F. Paulus. January 31, 1943

Lend-Lease. Tank destined for shipment to the USSR

Another form of allied assistance to the Red Army was participation in hostilities against the Nazi troops of foreign units created on the territory of the Soviet Union. So, in 1943 - 1945. on the Soviet-German front, the French aviation regiment "Normandy - Neman" bravely fought, whose pilots shot down 273 enemy aircraft.

1943, February 2 - the day of the defeat of the Nazi troops by the Red Army in the Battle of Stalingrad

In the USSR, two armies of the Polish Army were created, which by May 1945 had about 400 thousand people in their ranks. Both armies participated in the liberation of Poland and the defeat of Nazi Germany. In February 1942, a separate Czechoslovak battalion began to form in the city of Buzuluk, which by the spring of 1944 was deployed into an army corps. Over 800 Czechs and Slovaks were awarded Soviet orders and medals, 7 of them were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Ruslanova Lidia Andreevna (1900 - 1973) - singer

CAMPS AND SPECIAL SETTLEMENTS. The first special settlers during the war years were Soviet Germans from the Volga region (more than 1 million people). They were accused of espionage, sabotage and forcibly relocated to other, in the opinion of the authorities, more “safe” regions. From able-bodied men and women over 16, labor armies were formed, which were widely used in the construction of new and reconstruction of old enterprises, mines, oil wells, power plants, etc.

Lemeshev Sergey Yakovlevich (1902 - 1977) - singer

The fate of the Soviet Germans was shared by other peoples. Chechens, Ingush, Karachays, Balkars were deported from the North Caucasus. The Kalmyks suffered the same fate. After the liberation of Crimea, the Tatars who inhabited it were sent into exile. All of them without exception were accused of collaborating with the invaders.

And during the war years, the network of Gulag camps continued to function in the rear areas. The Gulag industry, with its system of forced labor, acquired great importance with the outbreak of war: various metals that were essential for military production were mined by prisoners in the mines, gold from Kolyma PELO to pay for military supplies to the allies. In connection with the occupation of Donbass, coal mining in Vorkuta, Karaganda, and Kuzbass acquired exceptional importance. The prisoners were building railways, mines, the Okha-Komsomolsk oil pipeline, felled the forest. Their working conditions were very difficult, but many were helped to survive by the consciousness that their contribution to the nationwide struggle against the enemy was significant and weighty.

special settlement

BATTLE OF KURSK. With the onset of spring, a relative calm set in on the vast Soviet-German front. Both sides were preparing for summer battles. German troops made up for losses, armed with new equipment: tanks such as "tiger" and "panther", assault guns "Ferdinand", modern aircraft.

By this time, the restructuring of Soviet industry on a military basis had been completed, which made it possible to create powerful tank and mechanized formations, entire aviation armies.

The attention of the command of both sides was increasingly riveted to the Kursk salient, which was formed after the winter offensive of the Red Army in 1943. The German command, seeking to recapture the strategic initiative, decided in the summer of 1943 to conduct a major offensive operation in the area of ​​the Kursk salient in order to defeat the Soviet troops here, and then, building on success, create a threat to Moscow.

Kozlovsky Ivan Semenovich (1900 - 1993) - singer

Having information about the intentions of the enemy, the Soviet command decided to deliberately defend its troops near Kursk in order to meet the expected enemy offensive, and then go on the counteroffensive and finally defeat it.

Battle of Kursk. July 1943

The main hostilities began on 5 July. About 4 million soldiers and officers came together in a deadly battle from both sides. At first, the Germans wedged into the defense of the Soviet troops for 12 - 35 km. But with the transition to the counteroffensive of the Western, Bryansk and Central Fronts, and then the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts, the enemy was driven back 140-150 km.

The culmination of the battle was a grandiose battle in the Prokhorovka area of ​​the Kursk region with the participation of 1200 tanks and self-propelled artillery guns.

Armored monsters shot at each other at close range, furiously went to ram. The July heat, the accumulation of gases from the shots choked the crews. The tankers of the wrecked vehicles entered into hand-to-hand combat. The unimaginable roar of thousands of engines and gun shots on the ground merged with the terrible rumble of hundreds of aircraft in the air. Heroism during the battle was massive. Over 100 thousand soldiers and officers were awarded orders and medals.

Maresyev Alexey Petrovich (1916 - 2003) - fighter pilot

During the Battle of Kursk, the enemy suffered heavy losses: over 500 thousand people, 3 thousand guns, 1500 tanks, 3700 aircraft. The cities of Orel, Belgorod, Kharkov were liberated.

Karmen Roman Lazarevich (1906 - 1978) - director and cameraman

The victory at Kursk was of great military and political significance. Hitler's last attempt to seize the strategic initiative in the war with the Soviet Union failed. If the Battle of Stalingrad marked the beginning of a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War, then the Battle of Kursk marked the final collapse of the offensive strategy of the Wehrmacht and became an important step in achieving a radical turning point in the war. The victory of the Red Army further raised the prestige of the Soviet Union as the decisive force opposing fascism. Hitler and his allies went on the defensive on all fronts of hostilities, not only with the USSR, but also in all theaters of the Second World War. As a result of the defeat of significant Wehrmacht forces on the Kursk Bulge, the beginning of the disintegration of the fascist bloc was laid - Italy withdrew from the war on the side of Germany, the scale of the Resistance Movement in the occupied countries of Europe increased.

BATTLE FOR THE DNEPR. After the Battle of Kursk, in accordance with the plan Supreme High Command Soviet troops in September-December 1943 launched a major offensive with the aim of reaching the Dnieper and forcing it on the move on a wide front. By the beginning of hostilities for the Dnieper, in a strip more than 1,300 km wide, 2,633,000 people were concentrated (the Germans had 1,240,000), 51,200 guns and mortars (the Germans had 12,600), 2,400 tanks and self-propelled artillery mounts (the Germans had 2,100), 2850 combat aircraft (the Germans have 2100). Since the spring, the Hitlerite command began to build the Eastern Wall strategic defensive line along the Dnieper, therefore, despite the advantage of the Red Army in manpower and equipment, it was not easy to overcome it.

The combat operations of the fronts commanded by K. K. Rokossovsky, N. F. Vatutin, I. S. Konev, R. Ya. Malinovsky and F. I. Tolbukhin were coordinated by representatives of the Stavka G. K. Zhukov and A. M. Vasilevsky .

Simonov Konstantin Mikhailovich (1915 - 1979) - writer

The offensive was not carried out simultaneously. It included several major operations - Chernigov-Poltava, Donbass, Dnieper airborne, Kyiv and others, as a result of which the enemy troops were severely defeated, and the Dnieper was forced. Soviet soldiers crossed the river mainly at night, on rafts and fishing boats. On the opposite bank of the Dnieper, they captured bridgeheads. The courage and bravery of the soldiers were massive. 2438 soldiers, sergeants, officers and generals were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Major military-strategic and political results were achieved in the battle for the Dnieper. Left-bank and part of Right-bank Ukraine, Donbass, Kyiv, 38,000 were cleared of invaders settlements, including 160 cities, an area of ​​350 thousand km 2 was liberated. But the price of victory was enormous. The irretrievable losses of the Red Army amounted to 417,323 people.

In the battles near Kursk and on the Dnieper, a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War and in the entire Second World War was completed. The offensive strategy of Hitler and his allies failed.

Forcing the Dnieper. September 1943

"RAILWAR" AND PARTISAN RADIES. The nationwide struggle in the enemy's rear acquired a huge scope. By mid-1943, 250,000 partisans and underground fighters were fighting in the occupied territories. Entire partisan territories and districts were created.

Since the summer of 1943, a large-scale " rail war". Only Ukrainian partisans blew up more than 3,000 echelons by the end of the year - 2 times more than in the first half of the year. In total, according to the data of the German command, in the territory occupied by the Nazis in July 1943, 1560 trains and rails were blown up, in August - 2212, in September - 2 thousand.

Jalil (Zalilov) Musa Mustafovich (1906 - 1944) - poet

Guerrilla war. Blown up enemy train

The “rail war”, in addition to destroying manpower and equipment, seriously undermined the supply of fascist troops, diverted enemy forces to guard bridges, stations, and the railway track. Rails were missing. Compensating for their deficiency, the Nazis welded broken rails, removed them from the second tracks, and imported them from Poland and Germany.

Firmly entered into the practice of fighting the Nazis partisan raids - the movement of columns through the villages, villages, towns, small towns of the occupied territories. Moving, as a rule, at night, they destroyed the Germans, executed traitors. The detachments of S. A. Kovpak, A. N. Saburov, and A. F. Fedorov carried out such raids with particular success.

The Germans took the most brutal measures to destroy the partisans. Villages were burned (often together with the inhabitants), and not only members of the families of the partisans, but also their relatives and even neighbors were declared hostages. Persons suspected of having links with the partisans were ruthlessly destroyed. Areas of operation partisan detachments often turned into dead zones. The population that survived the executions was taken to concentration camps. But even these measures could not stop the partisans. According to the statements of the Nazi generals, already in the autumn of 1942 partisan movement became a serious obstacle to the supply of the Eastern Front and the exploitation by the Germans of the occupied territory of the USSR.

Kovpak Sidor Artemyevich (1887 - 1967) - commander of a partisan unit

The partisan movement covered all the territories occupied by the enemy and numbered over 1 million 150 thousand people in its ranks. During the war years, more than 6,200 partisan detachments and underground groups operated behind enemy lines. The partisans destroyed 20 thousand German trains, tens of thousands of vehicles. As a result of sabotage and sabotage by the underground and partisans, the "contribution" of the occupied regions of the USSR to the German economy amounted to only a seventh of what Hitler received from France. The merits of partisans and underground workers were highly appreciated by the Motherland: 249 people were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 127 thousand were awarded the medal "Partisan of the Patriotic War."

Lavochkin Semyon Alekseevich (1900 - 1960) - aircraft designer

REAR - TO THE FRONT. Home front workers did everything to provide the front with weapons, ammunition, food. Their work brought amazing results. Already from the middle of 1942, the Urals produced 100% of heavy and 60% of medium tanks. The T-34 tank not only surpassed the German vehicles of this class, but also became the best tank of World War II. The main type of small arms was the PPSh assault rifle. The new Soviet planes Yak-3, Il-2, La-7, Tu-2 gradually gained advantages in the air, leading successful battles with the German Junkers and Messerschmitts. They successfully acted against tanks, vehicles, as well as enemy manpower.

Fighter La-5 FK

In the decisive sectors of the national economy, a movement of "two hundred" unfolded, fulfilling two norms per shift: one for themselves, the other for a comrade who had gone to the front. Komsomol-youth front-line brigades began to be created everywhere. Under the motto "In work, as in battle!" their members carried out the most important orders of the front.

It is difficult to measure the magnitude of the feat of the peasants. The front was provided with bread, regardless of any reasons. Even in 1943, when drought hit many parts of the country, Agriculture supplied the army and the population with food, and industry with raw materials. The nutrition of the population was poor. Food cards covered about 80 million Soviet people. The average worker received 600 grams of bread a day; 1800 g of meat, 400 g of fat, 1800 g of cereals and pasta, 600 g of sugar per month. Dependents received 400, 500, 200, 600 and 400 g respectively.

The Soviet people spared nothing for the sake of victory over the enemy. Voluntary assistance of the people to the front resulted in a patriotic movement to raise funds for the Red Army. During the war years, voluntary contributions from citizens to the Defense Fund amounted to 118.2 billion rubles, which was equal to the average annual expenditure for the needs of the army.

At the assembly of "flying tanks" - Il-2 attack aircraft (military factory workshop)

A huge contribution to the victory over the enemy was made by the creative intelligentsia, whose activities were filled with the high idea of ​​\u200b\u200bdefending the Fatherland. S. Prokofiev and O. Bergholz, I. Kozlovsky and L. Ruslanova, M. Blanter and I. Isakovsky, A. Tvardovsky and V. Solovyov-Sedoy, hundreds of artists, poets and musicians carried patriotic music, words and songs to the masses of soldiers on the fronts. Throughout the war they chronicled the heroic struggle of the Soviet people against fascist invaders filmmakers. The following films became classics of Russian cinema: “Secretary of the District Committee” by I. A. Pyryev, “She Defends the Motherland” by F. M. Ermler, “Two Soldiers” by L. D. Lukov and others. graphics: “Defense of Sevastopol” by A. A. Deineka, “The Fascist flew by” by A. A. Plastov, “Mother of the Partisan” by S. V. Gerasimov and others. music by A. V. Aleksandrov, text by S. V. Mikhalkov and G. A. El-Registan).

The labor feat of home front workers is highly appreciated. Over 16 million workers, including many teenagers, were awarded the medal "For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."

Orlova Lyubov Petrovna (1902 - 1975) - actress

QUESTIONS AND TASKS

1. What is the military-strategic and political significance of the Battle of Stalingrad? Why is it called the beginning of a radical turning point in the war?

2. What assistance did the allies of the USSR provide in the fight against Nazi Germany?

3. In the battles near Kursk and on the Dnieper, a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War and throughout the Second World War was completed. What exactly did this manifest itself in?

4. What role did the "rail war" and partisan raids play in the war?

5. What was the heroism of the home front workers?

This text is an introductory piece. From the book History. Russian history. Grade 11. Deep level. Part 1 author Volobuev Oleg Vladimirovich

§ 40. 1943: a radical turning point in the course of the war Stalingrad: the beginning of a radical turning point in the war. On November 11, 1943, the Nazis made their last attempt to capture Stalingrad, but the forces for the development of the offensive had already been exhausted. And for the defenders of the city, in essence, ended

From the book History. Russian history. Grade 11. A basic level of author

§ 18. ROAD TURN Victory at Stalingrad. In November 1943, JV Stalin described the past year as a turning point not only in the Great Patriotic War, but also in the world war as a whole. There were grounds for such a conclusion: the Red Army won major battles in winter

From the book History of Russia. XX - the beginning of the XXI century. Grade 11. A basic level of author Kiselev Alexander Fedotovich

§ 18. ROAD TURN Victory at Stalingrad. In November 1943, Stalin described the past year not only as a turning point in the Great Patriotic War, but in the world war as a whole. There were grounds for such a conclusion: the Red Army began to win major battles not

From the book History of Russia. XX - the beginning of the XXI century. Grade 9 author Kiselev Alexander Fedotovich

§ 24. ROAD TURN The fighting in the spring - summer of 1942. The offensive operations of the Red Army near Kharkov and Lyuban, as well as attempts to destroy the enemy near Demyansk, ended in failure. The troops were still inferior to the Wehrmacht in terms of maneuverability and technical equipment. author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich

7. A ROI IN THE TROJAN WAR By the end of the 13th century, the outcome Trojan War not yet determined - in some battles the West won, in others - the East. But on the whole, victory is beginning to tilt in favor of the East. Waves of Russian-Turkish-Ottoman, that is, Cossack-Ataman

From the book New History of Europe and America in the 16th-19th centuries. Part 3: textbook for universities author Team of authors

First stage and a turning point during the War of Independence The national liberation movement in the North American colonies was accompanied by a sharp political demarcation between the patriotic forces of the separatists (Whigs) and loyalist conservatives, supporters of

From the book History of Russia [for students technical universities] author Shubin Alexander Vladlenovich

§ 3. A TURN AND A ROLE IN THE WAR The fate of the war was to be decided near Moscow. The fall of the capital would have catastrophic both moral and military-strategic consequences for the USSR. On September 30, 1941, the German attack on Moscow began - operation

From the book Facts Against Myths: The True and Imaginary History of the Second World War author Orlov Alexander Semenovich

A radical turning point An unforgettable page in history will forever remain the Battle of Stalingrad, which made a huge contribution to achieving victory over Nazi fascism and marked the beginning of a radical turning point in the course of the Great Patriotic War and the entire Second World War. In the steppes

From book National history: lecture notes author Kulagina Galina Mikhailovna

18.3. Turning point in the course of the war and the defeat of Nazi Germany In the first half of November 1942, large forces of Soviet troops were drawn to Stalingrad. During the counter-offensive that began on November 19, 1942, the troops of the South-Western

From book Ancient Assyria author Mochalov Mikhail Yurievich

A radical change After a gap of several years, the Babylonian chronicle finally provides our attention with information about the events that took place. In April-May of the tenth year of his reign (616-615), Nabopolassar once again gathered a battle-hardened army and moved

From book General history in questions and answers author Tkachenko Irina Valerievna

14. How did the turning point occur during World War II? A turning point in the war was outlined in the summer - autumn of 1942. The first successes, which made it possible to change the general strategic situation, were achieved on pacific ocean. May 7–8, 1942 in a major naval battle in the Coral Sea, a strike

From the book Air Combat (Origin and Development) author Babich V. K.

From the book The Agony of the White Emigration author Shkarenkov Leonid Konstantinovich

2. A radical turning point in the course of the war and emigration The victory of the Red Army on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War had a decisive influence on emigration and forced many of its representatives to reconsider their positions. Events on the fronts left their mark on the behavior

From the book General History [Civilization. Modern Concepts. Facts, events] author Dmitrieva Olga Vladimirovna

A radical turning point in the course of the war (1942-1943) Until the spring-summer of 1942, the strategic initiative on all fronts of the world war was entirely owned by the "Axis Powers". The allies in the anti-Hitler coalition fought the hardest defensive battles. More than once the situation was

The Battle of Stalingrad to a large extent influenced the radical change in the course. It began on July 17, 1942 and lasted until February 2, 1943. All combat processes took place inside the city. The famous generals V. I. Chuikov and A. I. Rodimtsev led the defense movement. The German command needed to capture Stalingrad as soon as possible. Thanks to his capture, the Volga transport artery was automatically cut, which served as the only way to deliver bread and oil products at that difficult time.

The plan that turned the course of military events

Based on the Soviet plan under the secret name "Uranus", in November 1942, the troops of the Red Army carried out a turning point in the conduct of the battle - they went on the offensive, and a few days later they encircled the German group, this action was carried out under the direct command of General F von Paulus.

Starting from November 1942 and ending in December 1943, in accordance with the strategic initiative, which was firmly able to gain a foothold in the hands of the Soviet leadership, the Red Army gradually moved from defensive actions to ideally thought out strategic offensives. It is for this reason that this period of the war was given the name "radical change".

The defeat of the fascist group

As a result of the encirclement near Stalingrad, a huge army of the Nazis, consisting of three hundred and thirty thousand people, was captured. Proceeding from the secret name "Ring", the Soviet troops began the rout of the fascist group, its premature division into southern and northern parts. The southern one capitulated first, and eventually the northern one.

The significance of the Battle of Stalingrad lies in the fact that:

1) a radical change in occurred precisely in this bloody battle;
2) the anti-fascist countries of Europe intensified their struggle against the fascists;
3) there was an aggravation of Germany's foreign policy relations with its direct military allies.

The Red Army is again rushing into battle

December 1942 was marked by the beginning of the offensive of the Red Army into the Caucasus. In January 1943, the Soviet army partially broke through the blockade, and this, in its measure, was also a radical turning point in the war. The described battle on the Kursk Bulge was planned by representatives of the German command for the winter of 1943. Based on the Citadel plan, the Nazis planned to encircle and destroy the troops of the Voronezh and Central Fronts, which were concentrated directly on the Kursk ledge.

The Soviet command foresaw the course of events of the upcoming operations, as a result of which forces were concentrated for the offensive. The battle fell on July 1943, its duration was about two months. The course of this battle can be divided into two main periods: the first is marked by a defensive battle, the second by counteroffensives.

And stepped on our street great holiday

In 1943, a large-scale battle took place near Prokhorovka, and on the fifth of August the following cities were liberated: Orel and Belgorod. Thanks to this event, for the first time in the entire course of the war, a festive salute was given. On August 23, the battle ended, which was also marked by the release of North Caucasus, Rostov, Voronezh, Oryol, Kursk regions.

In December 1943, the capital of Ukraine was liberated, and the enemy retreated far from the outskirts of the city. These great events marked the turning point in the course of the war.

In the middle of the summer of 1942, the enemy reached the Volga, the Battle of Stalingrad began (July 17, 1942 - February 2, 1943). From mid-September 1942, fighting took place inside the city. The defense was led by generals V.I. Chuikov, A.I. Rodimtsev, M.S. Shumilov. The German command attached particular importance to the capture of Stalingrad. Its capture would have made it possible to cut the Volga transport artery, through which bread and oil were delivered to the center of the country. By Soviet plan"Uranus" (encirclement of the enemy in the area of ​​Stalingrad) On November 19, 1942, the Red Army went on the offensive, a few days later surrounding the German group under the command of Field Marshal F. von Paulus.

From November 1942 to November - December 1943, the strategic initiative firmly passed into the hands of the Soviet command, the Red Army switched from defense to a strategic offensive, so this period of the war was called a radical change.

The 330,000-strong Nazi army was surrounded near Stalingrad. According to the "Ring" plan, on January 10, 1943, Soviet troops began to defeat the fascist group, dividing it into two parts - southern and northern. First, the southern part capitulated, and then on February 2, 1943, the northern part.

The significance of the battle of Stalingrad is that it:
1) marked the beginning of a radical change in the Great Patriotic War;
2) in the anti-fascist countries of Europe, the liberation struggle;
3) Germany's foreign policy relations with its allies escalated.

In December 1942, the offensive of the Red Army in the Caucasus began. On January 18, 1943, Soviet troops partially broke through the blockade of Leningrad. The radical change that began near Stalingrad was completed during the Battle of Kursk and the battles for the river. Dnieper. The Battle of Kursk (Orel - Belgorod) - was planned by the German command already in the winter of 1943. According to the Citadel plan, the Nazis planned to encircle and destroy the troops of the Voronezh and Central Fronts concentrated on the Kursk ledge.

The Soviet command became aware of the impending operation, it also concentrated forces for an offensive in this area. The Battle of Kursk began on July 5, 1943 and lasted almost two months. Its course can be divided into two periods: the first - defensive battles, the second - the counteroffensive period. On July 12, 1943, a grandiose tank battle took place near Prokhorovka. On August 5, Orel and Belgorod were liberated. In honor of this event, the first salute was given during the war. On August 23, the battle ended with the liberation of Kharkov. By this time, almost the entire North Caucasus, Rostov, Voronezh, Orel, Kursk regions had been liberated.

In October 1943, fierce battles took place on the river. Dnieper, as a result of which the Eastern Wall was crushed - a powerful line of defense of the enemy. On November 3-13, 1943, during the Kyiv offensive operation on November 6, the capital of Ukraine was liberated. During the defensive battles, by the end of December 1943, the enemy was repulsed from the city. The turning point in the course of the war was over.

The meaning of the radical fracture:
1) Nazi Germany went over to strategic defense on all fronts;
2) more than half of the Soviet territory was liberated from the invaders and the restoration of the destroyed areas began;
3) the front of the national liberation struggle in Europe expanded and became more active.