Third Battle of Kharkov (1943)
Waffen-SS break into Kharkov

The Third Battle of Kharkov was the last major strategic German victory of World War II. Kharkov had originally been captured on October 25, 1941, but had fallen to the Soviets in February 1943, following the German defeat at the Battle of Stalingrad. Led by Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, the Germans counter-attacked and after destroying Soviet spearheads, retook the city in bitter street fighting.

The II SS Panzer Korps, equipped with heavy Tiger tanks, played a significant role. It comprised the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler and Das Reich divisions, which had been resting and refitting for a long period of time and were at full strength. Under the command of SS-Gruppenführer Paul Hausser, it checked the Soviet advance on Kharkov, despite odds of six to one, but, threatened with encirclement, Hausser withdrew against explicit orders from Hitler. The act so infuriated Hitler, he refused to award Hausser after the battle.

The II SS Panzer Korps (now reinforced with the Totenkopf division) was attached to Manstein's counter-thrust, which destroyed the Soviet spearheads and saved Army Group South. The Leibstandarte division then retook Kharkov, for which Hitler renamed the central square "Leibstandarteplatz". The battle is often regarded as the last successful German offensive in the USSR and is still studied in military academies as a textbook example of mobile defence.