The Soviet counteroffensive was turned back by the Germans however it successfully stopped the German attack. The Soviets launched an armored attack against the German Panzers. The Germans managed to advance close to the village of Prokhorovka their a major battle took place between German and Soviet armor. However the Soviets put up fierce resistance. They were able to easily break through the first line of the Soviet defense and then managed to break through the second line as well. Initially the German were more successful than in the North. In the South the German attack began at dawn on July 5th. The Germans advanced in the first day 6 miles, but the Soviets put up strong resistance and the German offensive was halted. The full German attack began on the evening of July 4th. The Germans planned to attack from the North and the South of and capture the salient. When the battle began the Germans had 780,000 men and 2, 928 tanks while the Soviets had 1,910,000 men and 5, 128 tanks. The Germans delayed their offensive to receive their latest tanks. The Soviets were warned by the British about the German plans and prepared accordingly with defense in depth. The hope was that the offensive would show that the Germans were still able to defeat their enemies. They hope to break through the Soviet lines and capture large number of Soviet soldiers. The salient was 160 miles long North to South and 160 miles East to West. The German planned a summer offensive against a Soviet Salient that was centered on Kursk.
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