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Please note that our logo is used on our website images only and does not appear on our products. Battle of Kursk by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) On 5 July, 1943 over 6000 German and Russian tanks clashed near the town of Kursk, just 300 miles south of Moscow. It was the beginning of what became the greatest tank battle in history. In the skies above this conflagration, an air battle of monumental proportions raged, with the German and Russian air forces locked in combat. This was war on a scale hitherto never imagined. A full week later the Battle was still raging, reaching a crescendo on 12 July when Hoths 4th Panzer Army met head-on with Rotmistrovs 5th Guards Tank Army near the village of Prokhorovka. With the Russian T34s electing to fight at close quarters, so desperate was the fighting that opposing tanks resorted to ramming each other. As the battle moved across the landscape all became utter confusion. Playing a major role in the air were the Luftwaffes Ju-87 Stukas, equipped with massive 37mm cannons slung under their wings. Led by Hans-Ulrich Rudel, the legendary Stuka pilot, these formidable tank-busters made a significant contribution to the Battle of Kursk. Nicolas Trudgians painting records the dramatic events at Kursk in a spectacular rendition that captures the very essence of this mighty land and air battle. Dominating the scene are a pair of Ju-87s. Having knocked out two T34s, they weave over the landscape as they try to avoid the attentions of Russian Yak 9s, the gunner of Rudels aircraft - in the foreground - blazing away with his machine gun. A pair of Fw190s have entered the fray, and the air is filled with smoke and cordite. In a typically detailed Nicolas Trudgian landscape, below the aerial contest Russian and Panzer tanks are seen in close combat, desperately maneuvering to gain some advantage. The old farm buildings show the ravages of war; tank tracks crisscross the fields, stretching into the distance where the battle extends to the horizon. A masterpiece in military art. AMAZING VALUE! - The value of the signatures on this item is in excess of the price of the print itself! Item Code : DHM2668B Battle of Kursk by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) - This Edition TYPE EDITION DETAILS SIZE SIGNATURES OFFERS YOUR PRICE PURCHASING PRINT Limited edition of 50 publishers proofs. SOLD OUT. Paper size 35 inches x 23 inches (88cm x 58cm) Meyer, Heinz Schultz, Fritz-Rudolf Werth, Josef + Artist : Nicolas Trudgian Signature(s) value alone : £170 SOLD OUT NOT AVAILABLE All prices on our website are displayed in British Pounds Sterling

Signatures on this item
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
Name	Info
Major Fritz-Rudolf Schultz (deceased) *Signature Value : £60	At the outbreak of war Fritz-Rudolf Schultz was assistant adjutant with Panzer Regiment 35, and took part in both the invasion of Poland and the Western campaign. Posted to the Eastern Fron with Panzer Regiment 35, from November 1942 he was Commander of the 2nd Company, and from July 1943 Commander of the 1st Company. Taking part in the Battle of Kursk he became the Regimental Commander of the 1./ Panzer Regiment 35, 4. Panzer Division in the autumn of that year. In January 1945 he was transferred to the Fuhrer Reserve of the Wehrmacht Supreme Council, and was the Panzer officer of the Centre Army Group in the final months of the war. He was awarded the Knights Cross on 21st April 1944 as Kommandeur of the I./Panzer Regiment 35, and the Oak Leaves to the Knights Cross on 28th October 1944. He died 2nd March 2002.
Oberfahnrich Heinz Meyer (deceased) *Signature Value : £55	One of the most successful of the younger Stuka pilots, Heinz Meyer joined the Luftwaffe in January 1940, and completed his Stuka pilot training in 1942. In July of that year he first saw action 3./St.G. 102 in Foggia, Italy, whilst flying on an armed reconnaissance mission. In February 1943 he joined 8./SG2 Immelmann on the Eastern Front. With his Staffel he was one of the most highly regarded pilots on the entire Eastern front and took part in the Battle of Kursk with Rudel. Heinz flew his 500th combat mission on 31st May 1944, and received the German Cross in August 1944. By the end of the war he had completed 618 combat missions, including 30 in the Fw190, and destroyed 40 tanks, 40 gun positions, 100 vehicles, 3 bridges, 2 ammunition dumps and 2 supply trains. He was awarded the Knights Cross on 17th April 1945. He died on 22nd September 1987.
Unteroffizier Josef Werth *Signature Value : £55	Josef Werth joined the Luftwaffe in 1937 and after the outbreak of war was posted to train as a Stuka radio operator in Nordhausen. Joining SG2 Immelmann on the Eastern Front, under the command of Hans-Ulrich Rudel, he flw his first combat mission in March 1943. He flew as radio operator / gunner continuously with SG2 in the east and completed a total of 300 combat missions. On 8th May 1945 he was taken prisoner of was by the Americans outside Prague in Czechoslovakia. Josef Werth was awarded the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, and the German Cross of Gold.

The Aircraft :
Name	Info
Ju87	By 1935 the German Luftwaffe was developing its first monoplane divebomber which entered production in 1936 as the Ju87 Stuka. The Stuka was to evolve into arguably the most successful single engine Axis divebomber of WW II. Utilizing a nearly vertical dive position the Stuka was stunningly accurate in the days when horizontal bombing was a relatively inaccurate science. The Ju87 was built for functionality and ruggedness. A fixed landing gear and exceptionally strong wing design were incorporated and no attempt was made to minimize protrusions. The Stuka was not designed for speed; it was an aerodynamic nightmare. The Stuka also incorporated a siren which when activated during a dive was designed to inflict psychological damage on the enemy below. The Ju87 was used with tremendous success in the Blitzkrieg attacks on Norway, Poland, Belgium, France, Holland, Yugoslavia, and Greece. Virtually unchallenged in the air during these Blitzkriegs the Stukas took a devastating toll on Allied ground and mechanized forces. Shipping was also vulnerable to the pinpoint attacks of the Stuka, and the Ju87 destroyed more Allied shipping than all other German aircraft put together during WW II. During Hitlers air attacks on Britain the Stukas reputation for invulnerability was shattered. Facing British Hurricanes and Spitfires the slower and less maneuverable Ju87s were destroyed in large numbers, eventually forcing their withdrawal from that conflict. Germanys attempt to develop an improved twin engine divebomber resulted in the introduction of the Messerschmitt 210 which was an unmitigated disaster. As a result, the Stuka remained in production longer than expected and the aircraft played a major role in Germanys surprise attack on Russia. In the first day of combat alone Stukas were credited with the destruction of over 700 Russian aircraft with minimal losses. One of Germanys top aces of WW II was Hans-Ulrich Rudel. Rudel flew over 2,500 combat missions in Ju87s, and was shot down on twelve occasions. Rudel was credited with destroying 519 tanks, 800 vehicles, 150 artillery pieces, one Russian battleship, one cruiser and one destroyer. Rudel was also credited with shooting down nine Russian aircraft in air-to-air combat.