how many tanks did the germans and russians lose at the battle of kursk

In the middle lay a large 200 km wide and 150 km deep Soviet-held salient (bulge) in the lines between German forward positions near Orel in the north, and Manstein's recently captured Kharkov in the south. In February and March 1943 German General Erich von Manstein had completed an offensive during the Third Battle of Kharkov, leaving the front line running roughly from Leningrad in the north to Rostov in the south.

They intended to retreat to the line late in 1943 and proceed to bleed the Soviets against it while their own forces recuperated. They planned on repeating this strategy in Russia and started construction of a massive series of defensive works known as the Panther-Wotan line.

In 1917 the Germans had built the famous Hindenburg line on the Western Front, shortening their lines and thereby increasing their defensive strength. With an Allied invasion of Europe clearly looming, Hitler realized that an outright defeat of the Soviets before the western Allies arrived had become unlikely, and he decided to force the Soviets to a draw. One complete army had been lost, along with about 500,000 Germans and allies, seriously depleting the Axis strength in the east. In the winter of 1942– 1943 the Soviets conclusively won the Battle of Stalingrad.

The Eastern Front war in 19 had thus developed into a series of German advances in the summer, followed by Soviet counterattacks in the winter. This meant they could only assume the offensive during the summer when the Russian continental climate had dried out the ground enough to give tanks a high degree of mobility. The German Army relied on armored forces to push through enemy lines at high-speed (the famous Blitzkrieg tactic).

How many tanks did the germans and russians lose at the battle of kursk