German offensive towards Kursk (second battle in history after Verdun where 2 million soldiers participated and 1.5 million died; the confirmed deaths were more than 100,000 Germans and more than 250,000 Soviets and 650,000 Soviet wounded); largest tank battle in history: 3,000 panzers and 4,000 Soviet tanks faced each other on the grassy plains of Ukraine on a front of only 10 km, the distance between rival tanks sometimes being reduced to a few meters.
