1st Tank: Testing at Bogodukhov
Thousands of people pass through the district center of Bohodukhiv every day. Few of them, seeing a T-34 tank on its pedestal, realize it's in the right place. After all, in August 1943, brutal tank battles took place here, resulting in massive losses for the 1st Panzer Army, whose adversaries included the SS Panzergrenadier Divisions "Death's Head," "Viking," "Das Reich," and later the 223rd Infantry Division.
The film's creator, Vasily Vasilyevich Gordienko, repeatedly heard from his father about the events of August 12, 1943, as a boy, his father lived in that same tragic village of Kiyany, where dozens of tanks converged from both sides. The Germans had the accurate and powerful 88mm guns of their Tiger tanks, which could destroy our T-34s from long range, while the latter had to rely solely on luck, ambush tactics, and artillery and air support.
The stories of Vasily Ivanovich Gordienko, along with documents from Red Army, Wehrmacht, and SS units, served as the basis for a documentary film dedicated to these events. The grim statistics of the 1st Tank Army's losses are the responsibility of General Vatutin, commander of the Voronezh Front. This is another film that tells the story of the terrible military tragedies in the Kharkiv region.
These battles should be remembered not only by the residents of Bogodukhov, but also by Kharkiv, as it was there that the battles for its liberation took place!