Uploaded May 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
German WWII Archive
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Night Combat on the Eastern Front, February 1943
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![Battle of Kursk- German Propaganda Footage- 21 July 1943 [Full HD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zDOVmWjtMz0/mqdefault.jpg "Battle of Kursk- German Propaganda Footage- 21 July 1943 [Full HD]
The Battle of Kursk, officially called Operation Citadel, was a German offensive against the Kursk salient from early to mid-July 1943.
The Germans planned to attack the Kursk salient simultaneously from the north, near Orel, and from the south, near Belograd, to cut off and destroy the Soviet forces inside the salient. The Germans planned to do so with strong tank forces, committing around 3,000 tanks and assault guns to the attack, including many Panther and Tiger tanks.
Thanks to Allied intelligence, the Soviets were warned long before the attack and used that to prepare by setting up extensive defense positions, including minefields, AT-gun emplacements and other defensive structures.
Because of the extensive Soviet preparations, the German attack, which started on July 4th, only progressed slowly, before coming to a complete stop around mid-July, as the Germans greatly underestimated the strength of the Soviet reserves.
Although Soviet losses were far higher than the Germans (the Soviets lost around 1,500 to 2,000 tanks and assault guns during Operation Citadel, the Germans around 323) the Soviets were able to replace their losses quickly, while the Germans were not. Additionally, while the Germans only lost around 330 tanks, the number of damaged tanks was around 1,600, and repairing these tanks timely was difficult for the Germans.
The Allied invasion of Sicily from July 9th forced the Germans to stop the attack to pull forces away from the Eastern Front.
This was the last time the Germans had the strategic initiative on the Eastern Front, after Operation Citadel, this initiative went to the Soviets until the end of the war.
The following video shows scenes from the batlte, shown in German propaganda newsreels.
It shows footage of German tank and infantry units advancing, German bombers and artillery attacking Soviet positions, destroyed Soviet tanks and other material, footage of German generals Model and von Kluge, among other scenes.
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Subtitles made by me.")
