The tank battle near Prokhorovka has long been portrayed as the biggest tank battle of the Second World War, as well as a brilliant victory for domestic weapons. Today, this very battle is being actively raised on the shield by all sorts of accusers of the Soviet regime and the "bloody" marshals of the Great Patriotic War.
Battle Story
Traditional historiography is known for this event, probably, to every compatriot. The opposing armies concentrated their forces in the area of the village of the same name. On the evening of July 11, a tank battle began near Prokhorovka. The first attack was carried out by the Germans. The Soviet army held back this offensive and launched a counterattack on the morning of July 12. The battle took on colossal proportions, for several hours the field was covered in fire and smoke. Around 1300, German forces made another attempt to break through the center of Soviet forces, striking with two divisions. However, this attack was also neutralized. By the evening of July 12, the German tank divisions were pushed back 10-15 km. The battle was won, and the Nazi attack near Prokhorovka was their last strategic initiative.in the Great Patriotic War.
Broken spears around Prokhorovka
For a long time in the mass consciousness of compatriots it was believed, and, perhaps, it is still considered that the great tank battle near Prokhorovka was the largest such episode of the entire war. However, this is clearly not the case. Even according to the bold estimates of Soviet historians, about 1,500 tank vehicles from both sides took part in the battle. However, in the same war, two other significant battles took place on the Eastern Front, which should be given attention in this connection. So, in the battle of Senno on July 6-10, 1941, about a thousand tanks were used on both sides. The total number of vehicles and four days of battle make this battle more ambitious than the tank battle near Prokhorovka. Unfortunately, this battle was devastatingly lost in the second week of the war, practically not being able to even delay the enemy forces. Moreover, this defeat opened the way for the Nazis to Moscow and marked the most difficult period of the war for the Red Army. But even the battle of Senno was not the largest battle of the tanks of the Great Patriotic War. Such was, obviously, the battle between the cities of western Ukraine Lutsk - Dubno-Brody. And it happened even earlier, in the first days of the Blitzkrieg - June 23 - June 30. About 3,200 tanks took part in this clash. More than three times more than near Prokhorovka. During the battle, the Red Army divisions were literally crushed, and the enemy received open space for an attack on Kyiv and Kharkov. It is not surprising that two such defeats wanted to be forgotten as soon as possible and not remembered even after May 1945!
Myth two
There is another large-scale revelation that actively accompanies
Today is a tank battle near Prokhorovka. Photos of the tanks destroyed as a result of this battle, spread over the entire field, can still be found in photo archives today, impressed by its scale. But these cars are mostly domestic, not German. Where is the enemy equipment if they were defeated on these fields? In fact, there were only a few Nazi tanks that were irrevocably disabled and abandoned. Most of them were not only evacuated, but also resisted the Soviet offensive after only a couple of months. But a lot of domestic tanks forever remained on this field. Today you can endlessly delve into the numbers, proving incorrect data about the battle of Prokhorovka, but in this regard, it should be remembered that the Soviet people in 1945, and even later, it was extremely important to know the history of success in the war. It was absolutely unacceptable to overshadow the joy of victory, thereby finally breaking people who had already carried a heavy burden on themselves. In addition, this battle became part of the most important offensive for the national victory on the Kursk Bulge. And the devastating reviews of the tank battle would hardly fit into the overall successful offensive of the Red Army. After the end of the war, real figures were significant only for a number ofspecialized historians, and the tank battle near Prokhorovka became overgrown with myths and remained in the people's memory as the largest battle of military vehicles.
