Who won the Battle of Kharkov?

 (My answer on Quora)

Which one? There were four altogether. In the First Battle (October 1941) the Germans took the city. The Soviets then tried to take it back in the Second Battle but failed (May 1942).

The Third Battle (late February and mid March 1943) was part of the Donets campaign and was the last big Axis hurrah on the Eastern Front. The Germans drove out the Soviets who had very recently taken Kharkov (16th of February 1943).

Scenes from the Third Battle of Kharkov. source: http://www2db.com

In the Fourth Battle (August 1943), also known as the Belgorod–Kharkov offensive operation, the Soviets finally defeated the Germans leading to a Wehrmacht retreat into the Ukraine and the Battle of Kiev (another Soviet victory).

All in all the battles proved costly for both sides. However that was not unusual for the battles on the Eastern Front.