Museum Third Battlefield of Russia in Belgorod

The museum «The Third Battlefield of Russia» was given such name because it was in the Prokhorovskoye Field that the critical tank battle of World War II took place as a result of which the German troops were forced to stop their offensive at the Kursk salient. Consequently, this allowed the Soviet troops to finally turn the tide of war and launch the Berlin offensive.

The first battlefield of Russia is the Kulikovskoye Field where the troops of Dmitry Donskoy won the victory over the host of Khan Mamay in 1380. The second battlefield of Russia is the Borodinskoye Field where the Russian troops headed by Kutuzov fought with the army of Napoleon in 1812. The third battlefield of Russia is Prokhorovka.

The museum building has the shape of a curve. The monument «The Battle of Prokhorovka. A Ramming» is in front of the museum. The exposition of the museum properly is also very interesting. The most part of the exposition is devoted to the summer campaign of 1943 including the battles of Kursk and Prokhorovka. For Germany the loss of the campaign meant the loss of strategic initiative. Since that time the German troops only retreated.

On the second floor of the museum there are expositions devoted to the earlier period in the history of Belgorod region, namely 15-16 centuries, the time of the fortresses of the Zasechnaya Cherta (fortified line), which defended the Russian lands from the raids of nomadic tribes from the southern steppes.

Various machinery including tanks, vehicles, and guns are on display around the museum. On a small lot of land there were also restored tank cuts showing how the defense line was organized. They are near the tankodrome with a zone of obstacles for tanks and a tribune for 1000 spectators. At the entrance to the tankodrome one can look at the new models of tanks. Another monument – «Tank Descent» – is also in that place.