Belgorod occupied Belgorod from 25 October 1941 to 9 February 1943. The Germans re-captured it on 18 March 1943 in the final move of the Third Battle of Kharkov. On 12 July 1943, during the Battle of Kursk, the largest tank battle in world history took place near Prokhorovka, and Red Army definitively retook the city on 5/6 August 1943. The Belgorod Diorama is one of the World War II monuments commemorating the event. In 1954 the city became the administrative center of Belgorod Oblast. From this time the rapid development of the city as a regional center began. Belgorod is
German code breaking in World War II 1941. While the Germans appreciated the gift from their ally, they did not explain that they were already able to read "Black" code messages. In general, however, German performance in code breaking was weak due to the fragmentation of responsibility and specialized personnel. The Navy's "B-Dienst" was an exception to the rule, although its successes largely ended when the Allies began using more sophisticated encryption methods by 1943. German code breaking in World War II German code breaking in World War II achieved some notable successes cracking British Naval ciphers until well into the fourth year of the war, but