Both the Germans and the Russians rebuilt their tank forces during the spring
of 1943. The Germans introduced the Tiger and Panther tanks, the former in
special heavy tank battalions to spearhead attacks and counter the Soviet tanks,
and the latter to replace the Mark IV as the mainstay of the panzer divisions.
In July 1943 the bulk of the German panzer force was concentrated around
Kursk at the expense of the other areas of the Eastern Front and Western
Europe.

Tanks were the key to unlocking the elaborate Russian defenses designed
to dissipate the impact of artillery barrages and to withstand the effect of
infiltrating infantry. The primary purpose of the tank was to enable the infantry
to break through a defensive line and either to envelope the enemy, or to range
deep into the enemy rear, disrupting communications and creating havoc. To
perform these tasks a tank required a turret-mounted gun capable of firing a high
explosive round to destroy bunkers and other defenses and a turret-mounted
coaxial machine gun to drive the enemy infantry from their trenches. By 1943
the tank had acquired the other role of destroying opposing tanks that required
a high-velocity gun capable of penetrating armor.

As soon as the first British tank appeared in battle, the Germans began to
develop ways to destroy tanks. In World War I the tanks were slow and prone
to mechanical failure, and once stopped they became easy targets for field
artillery. The thin armor of the early tanks was vulnerable to the 12.6mm or
.50 caliber round used in World War I antitank rifles by both the Allies and the
Germans. As late as 1940 the American Army still considered the .50 caliber
machine gun an antitank weapon.

Better automotive quality and thicker armor on World War II tanks dictated
more effective counterweapons. The British theory that the best way to stop a
tank was with another tank promoted the tank's function as an antitank weapon.

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