July 1943

Eastern Front

The fighting at Ponyri and Olkhovatka rages unabated as 9th Army throws in more attacks but with little success. Ferocious fighting develops around Teploye as 4th Panzer Division tries to take the village. Little headway is made against carefully sited Soviet Pak fronts and minefields. Fighting rages at Teploye for 3 days.

The Voronezh Front moves its 40th Army up to support the flagging 6th Guards and 1st Tank Armies. A battle group of the XLVIII Panzer Corps presses ahead of the main mody and reaches Height 260.8 from where it wheels west to push into the rear of the Soviet forces holding up the center and left flank of the corps. The Grossdeutschland Division begins to swing west to ease the pressure on 3rd Panzer Division. Heavy fighting rages around Verchopenje and Height 243.0, before both of which the Germans are held. By noon Syrtsevo has fallen to Grossdeutschland and 3rd Panzer Divisions but a 40th Army counterattack keeps the XLVIII occupied thereafter.

Vatutin attempts to ambush the II SS Panzer Corps at Gostoschchevo with his II Guards Tank Corps, but a timely Luftwaffe strike destroys more than 50 tanks, crippling the Soviet force. The III Panzer Corps continues to struggle forward east of Belgorod.