Third Battle of Kharkov

Overview

The Third Battle of Kharkov was a series of battles on the Eastern Front of World War II, undertaken by Nazi Germany's Army Group South against the Soviet Red Army, around the city of Kharkov from 19 February to 15 March 1943. Known to the German side as the Donets Campaign and in the Soviet Union as the Donbass and Kharkov operations, the German counterstrike led to the recapture of the cities of Kharkov and Belgorod.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Third Battle of Kharkov, fought from 19 February to 15 March 1943, was a German counteroffensive conducted by Army Group South against Soviet forces around Kharkov on the Eastern Front. Known on the German side as the Donets Campaign and in the Soviet Union as the Donbass and Kharkov operations, the engagement resulted in the recapture of Kharkov and Belgorod by German forces. The battle came in the immediate aftermath of the Soviet victory at Stalingrad and checked the momentum of Soviet advances in southern Ukraine. Despite a significant German disadvantage in force size — roughly 120,000–130,000 against approximately 210,000 Soviet troops — German forces inflicted substantially heavier casualties, with Soviet losses exceeding 45,000 against an estimated 4,500 German. The recapture of Kharkov represented one of the last major German offensive successes on the Eastern Front and temporarily stabilized the southern sector of the front line, setting conditions for the subsequent confrontation at Kursk.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (10)