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 German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

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 Max Clemens Lothar Freiherr von Hausen (December 17, 1846 – March 19, 1922) was a German army commander. He participated in the Austro-Prussian and Franco-German Wars and became ''Generaloberst'' of Saxon troops and War Minister in the Kingd ...

(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 Staff ...

, mainly in the Battle of

Dinant Dinant () is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Namur Province, province of Namur, Belgium. On the shores of river Meuse, in the Ardennes, it lies south-east of Brussels, south ...

and the Battle of Charleroi and the army were responsible for the destruction of

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

in September 1914. When the 2nd Army retreated after the

First Battle of the Marne The First Battle of the Marne was a battle of the First World War fought from 5 to 12 September 1914. It was fought in a collection of skirmishes around the Marne River Valley. It resulted in an Entente victory against the German armies in the ...

, Hausen saw his flank exposed and ordered a retreat. Upon the stabilization of the front on the river

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.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 First Battle of Champagne (french: 1ère Bataille de Champagne) was fought from 1915 in World War I in the Champagne region of France and was the second offensive by the Allies against the German Empire since mobile warfare had ended after ...

(the Champagne-Marne offensive) from February–March and

Second Battle of Champagne The Second Battle of Champagne ( or Autumn Battle) in World War I was a French offensive against the German army at Champagne that coincided with an Anglo-French assault at north-east Artois and ended with French retreat. Battle On 25 Septemb ...

(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 The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...

(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 An army group is a military organization consisting of several field armies, which is self-sufficient for indefinite periods. It is usually responsible for a particular geographic area. An army group is the largest field organization handled by ...

) several armies under a commander.

References

Bibliography