Battle of Kursk the total size of the Soviet force was 1,910,361 men, with 1,426,352 actual combat soldiers. Soviet armour strength included 4,869 tanks (including 205 KV-1s heavy tank) and 259 SPGs (including 25 SU-152s, 56 SU-122s and 67 SU-76s) Overall a third of the Soviet tanks at Kursk were light tanks, but in some units this proportion was considerably higher. Of the 3,600 tanks in the Central and Voronezh Fronts in July 1943, 1,061 were light as T-60 and T-70. With very thin armor and small gun, they were unable to effectively engage the frontal armour of German medium and heavy tanks
Kursk late 17th century and was ruled by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1611 and 1618. It was successively part of the Kiev Governorate (1708–1727), Belgorod Governorate (1727–1779), and Kursk Viceroyalty (1779–1797). Town status was granted to Kursk in 1779. It became the administrative center of Kursk Governorate in 1797. After a fire in 1781 devastated Kursk, a new plan for the city was developed in which a market center would be at the heart of the city (it was erected in the central square, known as Red Square). In 1768 the Voskirsensko Ilinskaya Church was built (). In 1778 both the