After 12 July 1943, the Red Army was in disarray. A German attack on the Kursk salient had plunged deep into its left flank, forcing the Red Army to throw its last reserves, the 5th Guards Tank Army, into battle near the city of Prokhorovka, in the hope that they would be able to halt the inexorable German advance.
But they never got the chance. As they maneuvered into battle, German scouts spotted them, allowing the elite German II SS Panzer Corps to change its direction of advance. Instead of moving to the north, it moved to the northeast. The lost 5th Guards didn't know what to do, and by the time urgent orders reached them to counterattack to the east, it was too late. The panzers had met up with German forces north of the salient, trapping five entire Soviet armies in a gigantic pocket and shattering the Soviet lines east of Kursk.
The panzers took advantage, plunging eastward through the gap in the Soviet lines. German army units poured through behind them, and they turned northwest, rapidly rolling up Soviet forces trapped between them and the main German army to the west. Soon, Stalin could hear the roar of panzer engines and aircraft from the Kremlin. He realized that the war was lost, and desperately sent Molotov back to Berlin to negotiate a peace treaty.
On 1 August, the final treaty was signed. Not unexpectedly, its terms were extremely harsh. The Baltic States, Belorussia, and the Ukraine were all annexed by Germany. The Soviet Union was forced to pay an enormous fine. And finally, they were forced to give back all the land they had taken from Finland in the Winter War of 1939-1940.
The next day, Stalin made a speech in front of the Kremlin. "They may have taken our land," he roared, "and we have been forced to agree to it, but we will never let them crush the Soviet spirit!"
But they never got the chance. As they maneuvered into battle, German scouts spotted them, allowing the elite German II SS Panzer Corps to change its direction of advance. Instead of moving to the north, it moved to the northeast. The lost 5th Guards didn't know what to do, and by the time urgent orders reached them to counterattack to the east, it was too late. The panzers had met up with German forces north of the salient, trapping five entire Soviet armies in a gigantic pocket and shattering the Soviet lines east of Kursk.
The panzers took advantage, plunging eastward through the gap in the Soviet lines. German army units poured through behind them, and they turned northwest, rapidly rolling up Soviet forces trapped between them and the main German army to the west. Soon, Stalin could hear the roar of panzer engines and aircraft from the Kremlin. He realized that the war was lost, and desperately sent Molotov back to Berlin to negotiate a peace treaty.
On 1 August, the final treaty was signed. Not unexpectedly, its terms were extremely harsh. The Baltic States, Belorussia, and the Ukraine were all annexed by Germany. The Soviet Union was forced to pay an enormous fine. And finally, they were forced to give back all the land they had taken from Finland in the Winter War of 1939-1940.
The next day, Stalin made a speech in front of the Kremlin. "They may have taken our land," he roared, "and we have been forced to agree to it, but we will never let them crush the Soviet spirit!"