The 3rd Army (german: 3. Armee / Armeeoberkommando 3 / A.O.K. 3) was an

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

level command of the German

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It was formed on mobilization in August 1914 seemingly from the II Army Inspectorate. The army was disbanded in 1919 during demobilization after the war.

History

Upon the mobilization Max von Hausen (Saxon War Minister) was given command of the 3rd Army which mainly consisted of Saxons. The army participated in the

Battle of the Frontiers The Battle of the Frontiers (, , ) comprised battles fought along the eastern frontier of France and in southern Belgium, shortly after the outbreak of the First World War. The battles resolved the military strategies of the French Chief of ...

, mainly in the Battle of Dinant and the Battle of Charleroi and the army were responsible for the destruction of Reims in September 1914. When the 2nd Army retreated after the First Battle of the Marne, Hausen saw his flank exposed and ordered a retreat. Upon the stabilization of the front on the river Aisne, Hausen was relieved of his command and replaced by General

Karl von Einem Karl Wilhelm Georg August von Einem genannt von Rothmaler (1 January 1853 – 7 April 1934) was the commander of the German 3rd Army during the First World War and served as the Prussian Minister of War responsible for much of the German milit ...

. Repulsing the French First Battle of Champagne (the Champagne-Marne offensive) from February–March and Second Battle of Champagne (September–November) 1915 respectively, the 3rd Army took part in all three battles of the Aisne and defeated the Fourth Army (General Anthoine) part of (General

Philippe Petain Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Count ...

) during the Second Battle of the Aisne as part of the

Nivelle Offensive The Nivelle offensive (16 April – 9 May 1917) was a Franco-British operation on the Western Front in the First World War which was named after General Robert Nivelle, the commander-in-chief of the French metropolitan armies, who led the offensi ...

from 16 April – 15 May 1917. Einem's right flank units participate in the Champagne-Marne offensive on 15–17 July 1918 supporting the east flank of the 1st Army. After suffering severe casualties in battle with the American Expeditionary Force (General of the Armies John J. Pershing) from 26 September – 11 November in the Meuse-Argonne offensive, the army was forced to retreat northwards shortly before the war ended, when it was part of .

Order of Battle, 30 October 1918

Commanders

The 3rd Army had the following commanders during its existence:

Glossary

* (Army Detachment) in the sense of "something detached from an army". It is not under the command of an army being a small army. * (Army Group) a group within an army and under its command, generally formed as a temporary measure for a task. * ( Army Group) several armies under a commander.

References

Bibliography