When Von Manstein assumed command of Army Group South on 14 February, 1943, the group was outnumbered 10: 1 in tanks and 7: 1 in infantry. The Russians were advancing across the Ukraine and had recaptured Kharkov. With Hitler's permission, Manstein assembled Army Detachment Hollicit and I st Patizer Army were assembled at the river Mius. The SS Panzer Corps was brought from France. This may have been the strongest Corps of the war. Von Manstein attacked with 350 tanks, five Panzer Divisions and air support by Von Richtofen's Luftwaffe across flat terrain destroying 615 tanks and 1,000 artillery pieces. March 3 brought a thaw. The SS Panzer Corps under Howszer encircled Kharkov. For four days, there was heavy street fighting and the city was recaptured by March 15th. The Third Battle of Kharkov was a street fight. The SS pushed street by street into the city center. The Great Square of Kharkov was a circular plaza surrounded by skyscrapers. The bombed out buildings were loaded with Red infantry as were the streets with dug in Russians. The Railway station and the tractor factory were taken and the few remaining Reds left the city. The military lessons of Kharkov were as follows: 1) An elastic defense was possible in WWII if the troops retreating were excellent and in the hands of a great commander. 2) A city could be taken by a numerically inferior force but only in a blitzkrieg assault with air superiority. 3) The Germans had taken on much more than they could handle in Russia. The War was already lost. With an Empire only ten years in the making, the Hitlerites probably did not have the political capability of retreating to a short line at the borders of the Reich. Wargaming the Third Battle of Kharkov I use my 6mm troops. Vince Clyant of The London War Room is making a Kharkov Great Square for me. Generic buildings can be used for the rest of the city. The rules are simple as befits a battle level game. Parts of the battle can be fought in larger scales. To see Red Infantry in action I recommend the Russian language film "Our Battalions are calling for fire!" Back to MWAN #102 Table of Contents Back to MWAN List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1999 Hal Thinglum This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com