Battle of Belgorod

Belgorod-Bogodukhov Offensive Operation
Part of the Eastern Front of World War II
Date 23 July – 14 August 1943 Location Belgorod Result Soviet victory
Belligerents
Nazi Germany	Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Erich von Manstein	Nikolai Fyodorovich Vatutin Ivan Konev
Units involved
4th Panzer Army Army Group "Kempf" XLVIII Panzer Corps III Panzer Corps XI Army Corps Großdeutschland Panzergrenadier Division	Voronezh Front Steppe Front 1st Guards Tank Army 5th Guards Tank Army 6th Guards Army 5th Guards Army 53rd Army 69th Army 7th Guards Army 27th Army
Strength
60,000 men 250 tanks	400,000-500,000 men 1859 Tanks
Casualties and losses
Unknown	50,000 killed 800 Tanks destroyed or damaged

The Belgorod-Bogodukhov Offensive Operation (23 July – 14 August 1943) was a combat operation executed as part of Operation Polkovodets Rumyantsev by the Red Army against the Wehrmacht forces. It was one of the operations that followed the Battle of Kursk.

During the Battle of Kursk, German armored units south of the Kursk salient failed to penetrate the defences between the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts in the Belgorod sector. The Red Army's Operation Polkovodets Rumyantsev followed Operation Citadel and included as its objectives the immediate liberation of Belgorod, assigned to the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts. On July 23, German forces of the XI Army Corps returned to their old, well fortified positions on both sides of Belgorod. Their combat strength had been reduced by as much as 50% following the Battle.^a

Early on 3 August 1943, the Forces of the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts ^b advancing on a wide front between Sumy and Volchansk (175 km), crossed the Vorskla river & quickly penetrated the defences of the 332nd Infantry Division & 167th Infantry Division to a depth of 100 km between Tomarovka & Belgorod on the northern flank, and as far as Bogodukhov sweeping aside the weakened 19th Panzer Division. By 5 August Belgorod which was defended by XI Armeecorps (Raus) was also being surrounded and isolated, requiring attempts by the German Armeeabteilung Kempf and 4th Panzerarmee Armies to relieve the garrison which was ordered by Hitler to defend the city. General Raus explains:

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