Battle of Kursk – biggest battle in world history

7 февраля 2018

By Elena Bormotova: Especially for the anniversary of the Battle of Kursk, the Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War in Minsk expanded and modernized its exposition.

The tactics and strategy of the Battle of Kursk has long entered the textbooks on military disciplines in lots of countries. In terms of its scale, the number of participants and the military and political results, this was one of the key battles of the Great Patriotic War.

The Battle of Kursk was the key moment after which the Soviet Union consolidated its dominance both in the air and on the ground. Those were 49 days, which changed the course of military operations during the Great Patriotic War. In the wake of the victory, since August 1943, the Red Army troops conducted exclusively offensive operations.

And today, for the first time in its history, the Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War presents an exposition on the Battle on Kursk. The exhibition features complexes of defense structures and command posts. It also presents items used in communication, mining and de-mining.

Some of the items can hardly be called weapons – small and large sapper shovels, flat picks and axes. Nevertheless, all this made a difference in the Battle. These items were used for engineering work, including for the construction of defensive structures. The main line of defense on the Kursk salient was 550 kilometers long and 5-6 kilometers deep. In total, half a dozen defense lines were constructed. The total depth of the structures was from 250 to 300 kilometers.