3rd Army (Kingdom of Yugoslavia)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 3rd Army was a
Royal Yugoslav Army The Yugoslav Army ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Jugoslovenska vojska, JV, Југословенска војска, ЈВ), commonly the Royal Yugoslav Army, was the land warfare military service branch of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (originally Kingdom of Serbs, ...
formation commanded by ''Armijski đeneral'' Ilija Brašić during 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 ...
-led
Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis * Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
invasion An invasion is a Offensive (military), military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitics, geopolitical Legal entity, entity aggressively enter territory (country subdivision), territory owned by another such entity, gen ...
of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...
in April 1941 during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. It consisted of two reinforced
infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...
divisions, two infantry divisions, and a
brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. B ...
-strength horsed cavalry detachment. It formed part of the 3rd Army Group, and was responsible for the Yugoslav-
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
border between
Lake Ohrid Lake Ohrid ( mk, Охридско Езеро , al, Liqeni i Ohrit , also referred as ''Liqeni i Pogradecit'';) is a lake which straddles the mountainous border between the southwestern part of North Macedonia and eastern Albania. It is one of E ...
and
Lake Skadar Lake Skadar ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Скадарско језеро, Skadarsko jezero, ; sq, Liqeni i Shkodrës, ) also called Lake Scutari, Lake Shkodër and Lake Shkodra lies on the border of Albania and Montenegro, and is the largest lake in Southern ...
.


Composition

The 3rd Army was commanded by ''Armijski đeneral'' Ilija Brašić, and his chief of staff was ''Brigadni đeneral'' Milan Zelenika. It was organised and mobilised on a geographic basis from the 3rd Army District, which was divided into divisional districts, each of which was subdivided into regimental regions. The 3rd Army consisted of: * 13th Infantry Division ''Hercegovačka'' * 15th Infantry Division ''Zetska'' * 25th Infantry Division ''Vardarska'' * 31st Infantry Division ''Kosovska'' * Cavalry Detachment ''Komski'' (brigade-strength horse cavalry) Its support units included the 66th Army Artillery Regiment, the 3rd Anti-Aircraft Battalion, the 3rd Army Anti-Aircraft Company, and eight border guard battalions. The 5th Air Reconnaissance Group comprising fourteen
Breguet 19 Breguet or Bréguet may refer to: * Breguet (watch), watch manufacturer **Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823), Swiss watchmaker ** Louis-François-Clement Breguet (1804–1883), French physicist, watchmaker, electrical and telegraph work * Brégue ...
s was attached from the Royal Yugoslav Air Force and was based at
Tetovo Tetovo ( mk, Тетово, , sq, Tetovë/Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, w ...
west of
Skopje Skopje ( , , ; mk, Скопје ; sq, Shkup) is the capital and List of cities in North Macedonia by population, largest city of North Macedonia. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre. The territory of Sk ...
.


Deployment

The 3rd Army was part of the 3rd Army Group, which was responsible for the Yugoslav- Albanian between
Lake Ohrid Lake Ohrid ( mk, Охридско Езеро , al, Liqeni i Ohrit , also referred as ''Liqeni i Pogradecit'';) is a lake which straddles the mountainous border between the southwestern part of North Macedonia and eastern Albania. It is one of E ...
to
Lake Skadar Lake Skadar ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Скадарско језеро, Skadarsko jezero, ; sq, Liqeni i Shkodrës, ) also called Lake Scutari, Lake Shkodër and Lake Shkodra lies on the border of Albania and Montenegro, and is the largest lake in Southern ...
, and the
Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...
and
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
border between
Trgovište Trgovište ( sr-cyr, Трговиште) is a town and municipality located in the Pčinja District of southern Serbia. According to 2011 census, the population of the town is 1,785, while population of the municipality is 5,091. Settlements As ...
and the Albanian border. The 3rd Army was responsible for the Albanian border and western section of the Greek border, and the 3rd Territorial Army was responsible for the eastern sector of the Greek border and the sector along the Bulgarian border. The 22nd Infantry Division ''Ibarska'' was to be held as the 3rd Army Group reserve around Skopje. On the left of the 3rd Army was the 3rd Territorial Army, with the boundary running through
Prilep Prilep ( mk, Прилеп ) is the fourth-largest city in North Macedonia. It has a population of 66,246 and is known as "the city under Marko's Towers" because of its proximity to the towers of Prince Marko. Name The name of Prilep appear ...
to Tetovo. On the right was the Adriatic coast defended by the Coastal Defence Command, with the boundary running north from the
Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...
. The Yugoslav defence plan saw the 3rd Army deployed in a horseshoe around northern Albania . Of the formations of the 3rd Army, the mobilisation of the 31st Infantry Division ''Kosovska'' and the Cavalry Detachment ''Komski'' was largely complete, the 13th Infantry Division ''Hercegovačka'' was partly mobilised, and the 15th Infantry Division ''Zetska'' and 25th Infantry Division ''Vardarska'' had only commenced mobilisation. All 3rd Army formations except the 13th Infantry Division ''Hercegovačka'' were to be deployed in a cordon. The planned deployment of the 3rd Army from west to east was: * 15th Infantry Division ''Zetska'' around Lake Skadar and centred on
Podgorica Podgorica (Cyrillic: Подгорица, ; lit. 'under the hill') is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. The city was formerly known as Titograd (Cyrillic: Титоград, ) between 1946 and 1992—in the period that Montenegro form ...
* 13th Infantry Division ''Hercegovačka'' in depth behind 15th Infantry Division ''Zetska'' and centred on
Nikšić Nikšić ( cnr, Никшић, italic=no, sr-cyrl, Никшић, italic=no; ), is the second largest city in Montenegro, with a total population of 56,970 located in the west of the country, in the centre of the spacious Nikšić field at the foot ...
* Cavalry Detachment ''Komski'' centred on
Andrijevica Andrijevica ( Montenegrin Cyrillic: Андријевица, ) is a town and the seat of Andrijevica Municipality in eastern Montenegro. According to the 2011 census, it has a population of 1,048. History The town of Andrijevica is a relatively n ...
* 31st Infantry Division ''Kosovska'' centred on Prizren * 25th Infantry Division ''Vardarska'' from
Ohrid Ohrid ( mk, Охрид ) is a city in North Macedonia and is the seat of the Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the List of cities in North Macedonia, eighth-largest city in the country, with the municipality recording ...
north to
Debar Debar ( mk, Дебaр ; Albanian: ''Dibër''/''Dibra'' or ''Dibra e Madhe;'' ) is a city in the western part of North Macedonia, near the border with Albania, off the road from Struga to Gostivar. It is the seat of Debar Municipality. Debar has ...


Notes


Footnotes


References


Books

* * * * * * *


Journals and papers

* *


Web

* * {{Royal Yugoslav Armed Forces Field armies of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia Military units and formations of Yugoslavia in World War II Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1941