Every year on August 23, the Day of Military Glory of Russia is celebrated. It is the Day of the defeat of Nazi troops by the Red Army in the Battle of Kursk, one of the decisive and largest battles of the Second World War
On the morning of July 5, 1943, German troops went on the offensive in the Kursk Salient area. The German high command planned to encircle and destroy Soviet troops with attacks in converging directions from the north and south at the base of the Salient. The 9th Army was advancing on the northern front of the Salient. It was opposed by the troops of the Central Front under the command of General Rokossovsky.
In seven days of fighting on the northern front of the Kursk salient, the enemy managed to advance only ten kilometers; the Germans never broke through the tactical defense zone. By July 12, the offensive capabilities of the 9th Army had been depleted, and it switched to defense.
Heavy fighting continued from July 10 to 12, culminating in the battle of two tank groups near Prokhorovka, in which Soviet troops forced the enemy forces to retreat and stop Operation Citadel.
The Soviet command decided to launch a counteroffensive. On July 12, the troops of the Western and Bryansk fronts began an attack in converging directions towards Oryol. By the morning of August 5, the city was completely free of the invaders, and by August 18, pursuing the retreating enemy, Red Army soldiers reached the approaches to Bryansk.
By July 23, both armies had reached the positions occupied before the start of the defensive operation, and on August 3 launched a decisive counteroffensive.
The Battle of Kursk led to a decisive change in the balance of forces at the front in favor of the Red Army, finally securing its strategic initiative, and created favorable conditions for a general offensive on the Soviet-German front. The defeat of the enemy at the Salient became an important stage in achieving a radical turning point during the Great Patriotic War.
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