Giffard Le Quesne Martel the Head of the Military Mission to the Soviet Union. He assessed the effectiveness of the Soviet order of battle and tactics during a visit to the frontline in the Kursk-Oryol region between 11 and 19 May 1943. In his autobiography, Martel describes advising the Soviet High Command, Stavka, to allow the Germans to strike first at the Battle of Kursk. To what extent his advice affected the course of the battle is debatable since his first conference with Stavka did not occur until late May 1943 while the Soviet Western Front commander, Marshal Georgy Zhukov, had been advocating the
Battle of Kursk order of battle German attack was halted. This order of battle does not show the complete composition of the Steppe Front. In addition to the units listed below, there were also the 4th Guards, 27th, 47th and 53rd Armies. The 4th Guards, 27th, 47th, and the 53rd Armies were held in reserve during the battle and thus did not participate. The 5th Guards Army and the 5th Guards Army were both committed to the counterattack in the Battle of Prokhorovka, where they fought as part of the Voronezh Front. The following units were part of the 5th Guards Army, commanded by Lieutenant General