The II SS Panzer Corps was formed from SS Division Leibstandarte, SS Division Das Reich and SS Division Totenkopf in July 1942. In early February 1943, the corps, under the command of SS-Gruppenführer Paul Hausser, was attached to Army Group South in Ukraine and participated in the Third Battle of Kharkov. In July 1943, the corps took part in Operation Citadel, spearheading 4th Panzer Army's attack in the southern sector. By July 11 SS Totenkopf had 94 tanks. Only 15 Tiger tanks were still in action at Prochorovka, and there were no SS Panthers available (the Panthers that were involved in the battle were those allocated to the Gross Grossdeutschland division, fighting to the west). The SS battalions that were equipped with Panthers were still training in Germany in July 1943. The bulk of the tank force was made up of the workhorse of the German Army, the Panzer MkIV.
SS Totenkopf at Kharkov, March 1943
This skin is of a Panzer MkIV of 2nd Platoon 3rd Company SS Totenkopf as it might have looked at Kursk in July 1943.
