Operation Kutuzov was a military operation by the Red Army in its fight against the German Wehrmacht during World War II. It was named after Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov, the Tsarist General credited with saving Russia from defeat during the invasion by Napoleon in 1812. The Operation began on 12 July and ended on 18 August 1943 with the destruction of the Orel bulge, in which the Western and Bryansk fronts defeated the 2. Panzerarmee in its fortified positions around Orel.