The Third Army ( sr, Трећа армија/Treća armija) was a field

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 ...

of the Army of the Kingdom of Serbia that fought during the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and def ...

and

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

History

First Balkan War

During the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...

, the Third Army participated in the

Battle of Kumanovo The Battle of Kumanovo ( sr, / , tr, Kumanova Muharebesi), on 23–24 October 1912, was a major battle of the First Balkan War. It was an important Serbian victory over the Ottoman army in the Kosovo Vilayet, shortly after the outbreak of ...

(23 - October 24, 1912) along with the

Serbian First Army The Serbian First Army (Српска Прва Армија / Srpska Prva Armija) was a Serbian field army that fought during World War I. Order of battle August 1914 *First Army - staff in the village Rača **I Timok Infantry Division - Smed ...

and the Serbian Second Army. It was composed of four infantry divisions and one infantry

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. ...

(76,000 men), deployed in two groups, the first one at Toplica and the second one at

Medveđa Medveđa ( sr-cyr, Медвеђа, ; sq, Medvegja, ) is a town and municipality located in the Jablanica District of southern Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the town has a population of 2,848 inhabitants, while the municipality has 7,438 ...

. It was assigned to the westernmost attack, with the task of taking

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a international recognition of Kosovo, partiall ...

and then moving south to attack the left flank of the Ottoman Army.

World War I

In World War I, the Third Army fought in the successful Battles of Cer,

Drina The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long Balkans river, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Alps whi ...

and Kolubra in 1914. But in Autumn 1915 they were defeated by the Bulgarians and Germans during the Kosovo Offensive.
The Third Army was reestablished at the

Macedonian front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers to aid Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, in the autumn of 191 ...

in 1916 and fought several battles against the Bulgarians, until it was disbanded on 28 March 1917.Armies in the Balkans 1914-1918 pag. 13
/ref> Pavle Jurišić Šturm remained commander of the Third Army until August 1916, when he was replaced by Miloš Vasić.

Organization

First Balkan War

World War I : August 1914

Commander :

Pavle Jurišić Šturm Pavle Jurišić Šturm KCMG ( sr-cyr, Павле Јуришић Штурм; 8 August 1848 – 13 January 1922), born Paulus Eugen Sturm, was a Serbian general of Sorbian origin, best known for commanding the Serbian 3rd Army in World War I ...

References and notes

Field armies of Serbia Military units and formations of Serbia in World War I Serbia in World War I Military units and formations established in 1912 1912 establishments in Serbia {{Europe-mil-stub

History

First Balkan War

World War I

Organization

First Balkan War

World War I : August 1914

See also

References and notes