The Panzers of Prokhorovka: The Myth of Hitler’s Greatest Armoured Defeat

Today the Russian state declares that there are three sacred battlefields in its Motherland where ‘victory’ changed the course of the nation’s history: The first is at Kulikovo. At this location Dmitry Donskoy’s troops defeated the Mongols in 1380. The second is at Borodino, where in 1812 Russian troops headed by Mikhail Kutuzov slowed Napoleon’s Grande Armée before Moscow. The third is at Prokhorovka. it was here on 12 July 1943 that the most critical tank battle of World War II took place. The battle saw the annihilation of Hitler’s elite Panzer force in the largest armoured clash in history, a defeat that left Hitler with no alternative but to halt Germany’s offensive against the Kursk salient (Operation Citadel). This victory at Prokhorovka allowed the Soviet troops to turn the tide of the war and ultimately march on Berlin. Thanks to numerous archival discoveries, this book will be the first to conclusively prove that this narrative is nothing but a myth.