Manstein's "MIRACLE" at the Third Battle of Kharkov [Heavy Sarcasm within] TIK Q&A 19 

It was my birthday last week so I fancied a change of pace with this video. Plus, I still get comments every day saying that Manstein didn’t lie ( ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-uzAzpIdDNcI.html ) and that I absolutely have to listen to what the German generals said because they were there and know what happened, whereas I wasn’t there and didn’t know what happened. Ok then… we’ll go along with what Manstein said 100% and see where we end up. Also I’ll be honest, Wesley asked this question several months ago, and I only realised last week that I had completely missed his question out (I’m really sorry Wesley). So this was a very quick last-minute video, which is why I didn’t go into the super-detail (divisional level) which I think Wesley wanted. That said, I’m currently working on Battlestorm Stalingrad behind the scenes, and I absolutely want to do the Third Battle of Kharkov as a Battlestorm series after that, because then that will lead nicely to the Battle of Kursk. So if you’re wanting me to go into great detail on it, start demanding that I hurry up with Stalingrad. And just to be clear, the sarcasm in the video is not directed towards Wesley, but is directed towards the idea that the Third Battle of Kharkov was a “miracle”. I’m not convinced that you can trust what the German generals (or any generals) by what they claim at all. The number of German troops was more than often stated, the number of Soviet troops was less than implied, and the Red Army was stretched thin and exhausted after months of advancing. The Soviet divisions were depleted, running out of ammunition and fuel, and weren’t concentrated. The Germans struck at the very moment the Red Army offensive was on the verge of coming to a halt anyway, and they had air superiority. Manstein had gathered substantial forces (either fresh or experienced) for his attack, and hit the Soviets in the flanks. They took on the Red Army in pieces rather than all in one go, and they only took a small amount of territory. If you call taking back a couple of miles after losing 100 miles a “miracle” then I guess this really was a great victory for the Wehrmacht. *Sources* Glantz, D. "After Stalingrad: The Red Army's Winter Offensive 1942-43." Helion & Company, Kindle 2011. Glantz, D. “Colossus Reborn: The Red Army at War, 1941-1943.” University Press of Kansas, 2005. Glanz, D. "From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations December 1942-August 1943." Routledge, Kindle 2013. Glantz, D. House, J. “The Stalingrad Trilogy, Volume 1. To the Gates of Stalingrad. Soviet-German Combat Operations, April-August 1942.” University Press of Kansas, 2009. Glantz, D. House, J. “The Stalingrad Trilogy, Volume 2. Armageddon in Stalingrad: September-November 1942.” University Press of Kansas, 2009. Glantz, D. House, J. “The Stalingrad Trilogy, Volume 3. Endgame at Stalingrad Book One: November 1942..” University Press of Kansas, 2014. Glantz, D. House, J. “The Stalingrad Trilogy, Volume 3. Endgame at Stalingrad Book Two: December 1942-February 1943.” University Press of Kansas, 2014. Glantz, D. “When Titan’s Clashed.” University Press of Kansas, 2015. Manstein, E. “Lost Victories.” Zenith Press, 2004. Melvin, M. “Manstein: Hitler’s Greatest General.” Orion, Kindle 2010. Zeimke, E. “From Stalingrad to Berlin: The Illustrated Edition.” Pen & Sword, Kindle 2014. A full list of all my WW2 and related books can be found here docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/114GiK85MPs0v4GKm0izPj3DL2CrlJUdAantx5GQUKn8/edit?usp=sharing Thanks for watching! Bye for now!

Manstien was actually playing hoi4. He was retreating to bait the Soviets into getting rid of their entrenchment bonus

Thanks, fans. I know i'm cool.

It is the same as the other MIRACLE victory - the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. The French had 35.4 billion men against 3 Englishmen.

he won because of the bad AI but they will fix it in the next DLC

Legends say the Soviets even had a dragon. Manstein killed him with his bare hands.

"Those who believe in the Manstein, shall receive the gifts of the Manstein." - TIK

Manstein took a shovel and fended off an army with it. Then he literally made a portal and had it spit Greandes at the Soviets. The Tanks rolled forward and he charged them, he picked them up like the Hulk and threw them around like bath toys. Finally, the Artillery started to Shell. He swallowed Shells and spit them at Soviets. True Story.

24:59 "Let he who is without sin cast the first Stein" lmao

"Let us go to holy scripture themselves" I'm dying

Glorious Manstein was the greatest field marshal to ever walk the battlefield, having personally killed 20 Soviet tanks in hand-to-hand combat himself and was only defeated because a humongous blizzard froze his army to death in the middle of July.

Actually Mansteins miracle was that he rescued the the Army Group south from total destruction. And despite beeing in a general strategic retreat, he still could deliver a Bloody nose to his opponent and gain an operational victory in a general defeat.

You miss the point, Rather than allow 3 SS Panzer Divisions be forced into a suicidal attempt to defend Kharkov as Hitler insisted, Manstein with the help of Hausser defied Hitler and allowed the Russians to over extend themselves and then defeat them. Manstein was able to stabilise the front and recapture Kharkov and Belgorod and allow the Whermacht 6 months to prepare for Citadel. Without that happening, the Eastern front would have collapsed much earlier.

I remember hearing that Mannstein personally went around to every POW camp to break off loafs of bread to make sure the millions of prisoners he had captured were well fed.

Blessed be the Holy Trinity of Manstein, Rommel, and Guderian.

Soviet Marshal Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky said: “We considered the hated von Manstein our most dangerous opponent. His technical mastery of every, and I mean every, situation was unequaled.”

I might be imagining things, but I almost detect a hint of sarcasm in your voice on this one!

I just checked Wikipedia. It looks like someone watched this video and edited the article accordingly.

What many often overlook, is that Manstein only included his soldiers in the battle because he didn't want them to feel left out. He could've done the entire thing alone with one tank, and everyone knew it. In fact, his thousands of soldiers probably only hindered Manstein by slowing him down, and was just yet another thing holding him back which was out of his control and undermined his immeasurable genius.

you outlined all the reasons for Manstein's success- timing, concentration off forces, attacking units sequentially and in the flanks, and exploiting success...none of things just happen, they require good leadership.

P.S. TIK please do Douglas MacArthur in this way. All the source material is awesome awarding himself medals, hookers in his HQ staff; you might have a NETFLIX special.

"Panzers don't need oil, they run off the blood of Aryans." - TIK xD

Fun fact, 2 days after he won the battle of Kharkov, Manstein also won the Premier League, the Epsom Derby and the Nobel Peace Price.

One reason Manstein was so successful in this battle involved having excellent line commanders, especially Herman Von Baulk.

Manstein could turn water from the black sea into oil from Baku

"Your Lack of Faith is Disturbing." - Erich von Manstein Edit: Sorry guys I noticed I used the wrong Your.

In this video, TIK masters the art of deadpan comedy

wow. The sarcasm was so thick I could cut a slice off and have it on toast.

I really enjoy this channel. I love being challenged on my ideas and when other pre conceived ideas are challenged. Great work, tik.

Starting to get the feeling you don't like Manstein

Leader: Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, Lvl 6 Panzer Genius. Bonus Abilities: 1. Easy Logistics, leader can operate up to 3 Panzer armies for up to 10 turns without fuel or ammunition. 2. Messianic Radiance, troops under this General gain +20 Morale whenever this leader orders a retreat, if this leader counter-attacks after a retreat, he materializes +100 supplies. Leader: Marshal of the Soviet Union Konstantin Rokossovsky, Lvl 10 Swarm Lord. Bonus Abilities: 1. Necromancy, the leader can resurrect fallen allies or foes and thus swell the numbers of the Red Horde. 2. Zerg Rush, for each 10,000 peasants sacrificed the leader can summon one fully equipped division which operates at +33% attack speed. The province in which this ability is used suffers +5 dissent.

Not sure what's being criticized here. Is TIK suggesting that Manstein's ideas about a war of maneuver were worthy of lampoon, and that only a static defense would have won WW II for the Germans? Did the Red Army actually win the 3rd Battle of Kharkov?

Aren't you the guy that claims the Red Army was the equal of the Germans during Operation Barbarossa?

I knew you would come to your senses eventually and embrace the Manstein!

I heard Constantine saw a vision of the Reich’s child and had his men paint Manstein’s initials on their shields, winning him the battle of the Milvian Bridge by divine intervention.

I know this was ironic, but imagine you aren't familiar with TKI...

Hi TIK, I have been following your videos for a few years along with other well researched work from your other counterparts such as Mr. Bernhard Kast (and a few others). Being a career Naval Officer (US Navy) I have attended several lectures (War College) including COL Glantz's explanations of the (mis)information that was taught after WW II as part of the Cold War. I also understand what the opening of the former Soviet Union's archives have enabled a more accurate assessment of the course of WW II especially on the Eastern Front campaign. My only concern is about you using sarcasms to describe the inaccuracies and/or propaganda used during the Cold War - this does not necessarily mean that Field Marshal Von Manstein was some clown. Most flag officers (Generals and Admirals) had and/or needed to have strong personalities which at times nearly led to culture of "cults", so is propaganda, so is war; we (USA) had our share of "strong personalities" in world conflicts. One must take in consideration, the context of the time these "miracles" were accomplished - hindsight being 20/20, we (our generation) have the luxury of being able to look back at history with all the documentation tools at our disposal, which previous generations did not have. I really enjoy your productions but I think it would be "more serious" (no pun intended) to keep jokes and sarcasms out of such a serious subject as war especially since you do have great credibility due to your comprehensive research on the subjects you describe. Peace be with you, Ciao, L (Veteran)

"Manstein, you magnificent bastard - I read your book!!" Patton(probably)

TIK, this video should come with a warning label. I almost drowned in the sarcasm. Fortunately for me I had my snorkel handy.

Great content. I was laughing throughout the entire video lol while also learning stuff as well.

Well, I have had at least a couple years worth of my daily sarcasm allowance! I really enjoyed this exposition with all of its gooey and dripping sarcastic goodness.

Remember when Manstein singlehandedly encircled all of the french army in 1940? That my friends is known as Fall Gelb.

Ok the Wehrmacht's ability has at times been exaggerated but let's not become too revisionist. Manstein had flaws but overall he was a great commander.

I sometimes joked about why teachers don't want us to use Wikipedia as a source, but now i get why they were so stubborn

Would have been a different outcome if Manstein had the 6th Army and Paulus was on the Don.

Thanks for clarifying this! The Germans truly were the best soldiers. I'm going to share this to all of my friends as well so they can see how awesome Manstein was! *tips Stahlhelm*

Careful TIK the international audience on here might not appreciate your excellent British sarcasm. Great video keep going.

Von Manstein most successful campaign was the one after the war when he convinced everybody that he never lost a battle.

I loved this, the tone of it, superb !!!

i think manstein had about 70k units of sarcasm compared to TIKs 80 bazillion units which is a win ratio of about 1:8million. he easily wins at any sarcasm odds by retreating and brilliant miracle counter sarcasming a total victory

I think by 1943, the best Germany could hope for was a stalemate and even then the likelihood of that was slim at best

Manstein: We were outnumbered 8 to 1 Siege of Vienna: Hold mein beer

All the memoires of German generals go along the lines of "If I was in charge we could have won" and "We were just about to depose Hitler"

You all hear it right? They are coming... They are close... The angry wehraboo

As always, your videos are on point. I love that I just have to listen and not think at all, thank you for explaining what an exceptionnal commander Manstein was. Many thanks.

I always love your iconic "hitler was a madman!" moments

Turning the situation at the end of 42 into a solid front at the start of 43 was indeed a miracle

Happy Birthday TIK - this was a hilarious delight and very entertaining. Keep up the great work, Monty

Wry and tongue-in-check ranting 👍 Love the straight faced counter-referencing. Tis all in the sources. 😉 Also, hippy bath day...

And here we are in 2022 and a war is being waged across the same battlefields

Happy birthday and thanks for another great video.

The panzers run on aryan blood 😂😂😂

This charlatan who is sarcastically maintaining that Manstein could have won the war if he had been allowed to retreat to Berlin, is ignoring two facts, two quotes respectively: “We need the oil in the south (Baku) to continue the war” - Hitler. “That’s irrelevant as long as the Red Army remains undefeated in the field” - Manstein. Therefore, Manstein was right, Hitler and this charlatan TIK were and still are wrong. Had Manstein not retreated, the Wehrmacht in southeastern would have faced annihilation like in Stalingrad. The panzers did not run on Arian blood as this TIK is joking, but to pursue for oil in the south or holding at any cost, would certainly cause a disaster for the Wehrmacht. Never forget that Manstein was the nephew of legendary Paul von Hindenburg. Why someone does not ask this TIK if Manstein was right when he protested the decision of Hitler to terminate operation Citadel as the Kursk salient was likely to be closed? You need oil to continue the war, but can you get it if you are facing crippling defeats in the field? Which one is more urgent to be dealt with?

I honestly wish there was less sarcasm. I just want the historic information. Corrected of course so we have a better idea of actual numbers. Sarcasm just destroyed historic relevance as it becomes a cheesy chase for going after someone like Manstein. I honestly don't care for a specific general, nor their padded records. However in looking for information about the third battle I have to either watch stuff that takes everything at face value, or stuff that clearly waste too much time making fun of it. Plus being sarcastic about falling back to shorten the logistics while forcing the Russians to over extend theirs, is good tactics, regardless who does it.

Thanks for blasting 4 TO 1 Into my head TIK!

Had you been alive in the 40 s your sarcasm would have made manstein surrender.....

I love the sarcasm and all the different numbers depending on what resource you use. Thanks.

Best vid ever - the sarcasm knows no bounds - much love - great as always

The writings added on the screen are just hilarious

Even when qualified and filtered through three kilos of sarcasm the counter-attack at Kharkov was pretty brilliant :P

What actually happend is manstein single handedly took down the red army. He said "step back boys iv got this. Its manstime (the famous manstein time power move manstein was famous for) and started mansteining all over the battlefield. He made it all the way to moscow bent stalin over and gave him a spanking. Hitler was so excited to hear the news of victory he ran around the bunker screaming "Manstein! Manstein! Manstein!" with the safety off and shot himself by accident in a fit of madman excitement. Ofcourse the germans after this became so depressed they gave up and surrendered. Seeing no point in going on without the madman himself. Historically accurate retelling by manstein himself.

Happy birthday TIK ! Love your feudal direction ! haha

Ahhh a fine taste of a damn good sarcasm

Do you really think, in hindsight, that holding onto the Caucasus with Army Group A was a plausible idea?

The amount of sarcasm is this, is just phenomenal.

Great stuff TIK, you're the best ! -Here is an idea for a future video series; An in depth look at the Dieppe Raid.

Happy Birthday and keep up the good work. May our lord live. One question, did you drunk to much at you birthday?

25 minutes video of sarcasm< great work! I laughed a lot

If manstien had the manpower, rescources and materials of the allies he could have conquered much of the known world

I enjoyed watching you have sooo much fun with this video share. Belated Happy Birthday Tik.

the amount of sarcasm in this video might be lethal for some people

Strange, I keep hearing the sound of someone grinding an axe :) Nice one TIK

Please TIK, I'm asking this as a genuine question and not a cyberbully: one thing I still don't get, I saw your Soviet Economic Collapse in 1943 video in which you several times state that Soviet historic figures are basically forged and not particularly trustworthy, but here you take Glanz's numbers as absolutely truthful. I don't mean Glanz is masking something, but that his sources are the same Soviet archives as the others, not? I mean, Glanz was handpicked to have access to those files, and how can we assure that those files weren't modified for foreign comsuption altogether? Russia hasn't really been through a real regime change in all these years. Thanks and congrats for the work

man, i would really like to see a simple recap of Manny's Miracle in simple terms, with out a recap of history and histrionics

More, make more videos roasting "miracles" of ww2

Man, Sabaton needs to do a song about this, titled "372647493 to 1". Also, those vile academic scholars, what other numbers they might be lying about I wonder...

A declaration of sarcasm diminishes the quality of said sarcasm.

You are a Madman !!!(!) Superb superior humor. Fun wins in every battle. Great vid.

this is meme-tastic!

Hahahahaha TIK I love your sarcasm.

Great and fun presentation

Great video! I've really been getting into your history series, very professional and well done. I have a question about when you calculate manpower vs manpower. So let's say German divisions in a battle add up to 50,000 men and Russian divisions add up to 100,000. Are you equating that to a 1:2 ratio or are you just counting frontline combat troops? I know a big chunk of German manpower was just support and logistics and specialists whereas I believe the Russians had less specialists and more frontline combat troops compared to Germans. So as far as just combat troops vs combat troops the ration could actually be more along Manstein's and other German commanders estimates. Please clarify someone I just thought about this and would like clarification.

Oh boy , you never find a lot about the third battle of Kharkov - my Monday is saved thanks tik

This video is genius. I'm afraid TIK may have been working to hard lately as this video feels like a pressure valve that went full pressure for 30 minutes.

Heavy sarcasm in this vid is hilaruous!!!

Nice, even better general than I thought. Thanks.

Lord Manstein, pray for our panzers.

Although I found the sarcasm quite hilarious, it did make the video overtly long and, sadly, the joke suffered a bit from it. Other than that, I would have to say that I enjoyed this content and I hope you do something similar in the future (but maybe shorten it a bit) But on a more serious note, do you believe that they could have defended the territory they retreated from, or were they doomed no matter what they did? (You could make a reply in a small follow-up video.) I am no expert on this topic, so I have no arguments to start a discussion myself.

Manstein makes Zhukov looks like Little Lord Fauntleroy, 😅😂😊 Tik has a sense of humor that's for sure.

Very impressive analysis... I would recommend another example of “forgotten sacrifice” for a future documentary...the 551st Parachute Battalion (the real Lost Battalion of WWII ) at Rochlenval Belgium in January 1945. They defeated General Joachim Pieper and his German forces - during the Battle of the Bulge. - with the loss of 86% killed or wounded !!! That combined with the death of their commanding officer - Lieutenant Colonel Joerg their reward - the 551st was disbanded ? My father - 1st Lieutenant John Milton Hill was one of the few survivors.