| Unit Name: | 3rd Division |
| Dates: | 1888 - 1945 |
| Country: | Empire of Japan |
| Branch: | Imperial Japanese Army |
| Type: | Infantry |
| Garrison: | Nagoya, Aichi, Japan |
| Notable Commanders: | Taro Katsura Yoshimichi Hasegawa Yusaku Uehara Nobuyoshi Muto |
| Battles: | First Sino-Japanese War Russo-Japanese War Siberian Intervention Shandong Incident World War II |
| 3rd Division | |
| Date: | 1888 |
| Subordinate: |
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| 3rd Division | |
| Date: | 1937 |
| Subordinate: |
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| 3rd Division | |
| Date: | 1945 |
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The was an infantry division in the Imperial Japanese Army. Its call sign was the .
The 3rd Division was formed in Nagoya in January 1871 as the, one of six regional commands created in the fledgling Imperial Japanese Army. The Nagoya Garrison had responsibility for the central region of Japan. This region was known as the Chūbu district, and stretched from Aichi Prefecture to Ishikawa Prefecture. Upon the recommendations of the Prussian military advisor Jakob Meckel to the Japanese government, the six regional commands were transformed into divisions under the army reorganization of 14 May 1888.
As one of the oldest divisions in the Imperial Japanese Army, the 3rd Division participated in combat operations during the First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War, the Siberian Intervention, and the Shandong Incident.
Some of its more noteworthy commanders included Katsura Taro, Hasegawa Yoshimichi, Uehara Yusaku and Nobuyoshi Muto.
9 December 1938, the 3rd Division was subordinated to 11th Army and was subsequently one of the divisions assigned to the China Expeditionary Army (CGA) headquartered in Nanjing. As one of the most powerful units ("crack" units) in the theatre, the 3rd Division served in nearly every battle in central China. During the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign it was converted into a triangular division on July 4, 1942. It later served for a time as a headquarters and garrison division for strategic Zhejiang Province.
Battles and Campaigns fought in China (1937 - 1945)
| Battle | Actions start date data-sort-type="date" | Area | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 August 1937 | Chuanshakou - Shanghai | ||
| 14 February 1938 | south of Xuzhou | ||
| 22 August 1938 | Xinyang | ||
| 3 May 1939 | Tongbai - Suixian | ||
| 1 September 1939 | Hubei - Hunan - Changsha | ||
| 13 December 1939 | Tingsiqiao - Xinyang | ||
| 1 May 1940 | Xiangyang - Xiakou, Nanzhang County | ||
| 23 November 1940 | Suizhou | ||
| 24 January 1941 | Ye County, 保安鎮 city | ||
| 7 September 1941 | south bank of Miluo River - Huashan, Xinhua County | ||
| 24 December 1941 | Yueyang - Miluo River - Liuyang River - Miluo River | ||
| 15 May 1942 | ? | ||
| 9 April 1943 | north coast of Dongting Lake | ||
| 2 November 1943 | south of Changde - Changde - south of Changde | ||
| 27 May 1944 | |||
| September 1944 | southern Liuzhou |
At the end of World War II, with the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Army, the 3rd Division was formally disbanded in Zhejiang.