| 3rd Panzer Division | |
|---|---|
| 3. Panzer-Division — 3. PzDiv — XX | |
 Unit Symbol | |
| Active | 15 October 1935 – 8 May 1945 |
| Country |  Nazi Germany |
| Branch |  German Army |
| Type | Panzer |
| Role | Armoured warfare |
| Size | Division |
| Part of |  Wehrmacht |
| Garrison/HQ | Wehrkreis III:Berlin |
| Engagements | |
| Insignia | |
| DuringOperation Citadel | .JPG) |
| Summer 1943 |  |
The3rd Panzer Division (English:3rd Tank Division) was an armoured division in theGerman Army, theWehrmacht, duringWorld War II.
The division was one of the original three tank divisions established by Germany in 1935. The division participated in the Invasions of Poland, Belgium, France and the Soviet Union. From 1941 to 1945 it continuously fought on theEastern Front.
The 3rd Panzer Division was formed on 15 October 1935[1] from elements of the1st and3rd Cavalry Division as well as a variety of other military and police units, and was headquartered in the German capitalBerlin. It was one of three tank divisions created at the time, the other two being the1st and2nd Panzer Division.[1] Germany had renounced theTreaty of Versailles earlier in the year which had forbidden the country, among other things, from having tank forces, a treaty Germany had violated almost from the start by secretly developing tanks and operating a coverttank school in the Soviet Union.[2][3]
Members of the divisions tank regiment participated in theSpanish Civil War on theNationalist side as part of the GermanLegion Condor. The division also took part in the annexation of Austria in March 1938, the so-calledAnschluss.[3]
The 3rd Panzer Division participated in the 1939invasion of Poland, where it was the most numerically powerful PanzerDivision, with 391 tanks.[4] It was engaged in the northern sector, operating fromPomerania, and advancing viaToruń toBrest-Litovsk.[3] In May 1940 it was part of the German forcesinvading Belgium, advancing via theAlbert Canal toBrussels and into France. Like the other German tank divisions the 3rd lost one of its two tank regiments in late 1940 to allow for the creation of further tank divisions, and gained an Infantry regiment instead.[5]
The Division was ordered to prepare for service in Libya, North Africa that same year to help support the Italian efforts there. The deployment was cancelled by Hitler due to theinvasion of Greece on 28 October 1940. The Division was instead diverted toOperation Felix though the operation was never initiated.[6]
The 3rd Panzer Division was part ofOperation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, which began on 22 June 1941. Initially it was engaged in the central sector of the advance but was then redirected south to participate in theBattle of Kiev. From there it participated in theBattle of Moscow, advancing towardsTula. With the Soviet counterattacks in the winter of 1941–42 the division acted as a stand-by emergency force and, in March 1942, participated in the defense ofKharkov. The division participated in theCase Blue, the German attack in the southern sector of the Eastern Front in June 1942, in which the 3rd Panzer Division advanced towards the Caucasus. Initially successful the operation was ultimately a failure, with the division suffering heavy casualties in the process, especially in the fighting aroundMozdok. It narrowly escaped encirclement on its retreat by crossing the frozenSea of Azov near Rostov.[5]
The 3rd Panzer Division took part in theBattle of Kursk, attacking west ofBelgorod. Following the German failure the division was engaged in the defense and retreat that followed. It remained on the Eastern Front for the remainder of the Second World War, fighting in Ukraine, Romania, Poland and Hungary. At the end of the war saw the division engaged inStyria where it evaded Soviet forces and managed to surrender to the US Army instead.[5] The majority of the divisions soldiers were released from captivity by July 1945.[7]
The commanders of the division:[8]
The organisation of the division:[9]
| 1939 – Poland | 1943 – Eastern Front |
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