April 1943

Eastern Front

The Soviets begin the large-scale mobilization of civilian labor to dig hundreds of miles of trenches and defense works in teh Kursk salient. The Stavka has already identified this area as the most likely location of a renewed German offensive in the summer. By the end of the month more than 150,000 men and women are at work digging trenches and tank traps, while the Voronezh and Central Fronts lay minefields and construct elaborate anti-tank positions. The Stavka has, after considerable deliberation, decided to fight a defensive battle before unleashing its own counteroffensive.