III Armored Corps is a corps of the United States Army headquartered at Fort Hood, Texas. It is a major formation of United States Army Europe and Africa. It was designed as three of the four newly activated corps of the American Expeditionary Force, which at that time numbered over one million men in 23 divisions. The corps took command of US forces training with the French Seventh Army at the same time that IV Corps took command of US forces training with the French Eighth Army.

Aisne-Marne campaign

In July, the corps was rushed to the Villers-Cotterêts area in preparation for the Third Battle of the Aisne, the first major Allied counteroffensive of the year. There, it was put under the French Tenth Army and given administrative command of the 1st Division and the 2nd Division which were previously under command of the French XX Corps. However, the command group arrived in the area too late to exercise tactical command, and it was instead attached to the French XX Corps. On 18 July, the attack was launched, with the force spearheading the French Tenth Army's assault on the high ground south of Soissons. During this attack, the Corps also cut rail lines supplying the German Army.

The first day of the attack was a success, but on the second day, the Germans were reinforced with heavier weapons and were able to blunt the attack, inflicting high casualties. The force was successful despite heavy casualties, and German forces were forced to retreat. On 1 August, the corps arrived in the Vesle area near the Marne River, where it assumed command of the 3rd Division, 28th Division, and 32nd Division from the French XXXVIII Corps, placing side by side with the U.S. I Corps for a few days. Troops continued to advance until September when they withdrew to form the new First United States Army.

Meuse-Argonne campaign

thumb|Map of the area during the Meuse-Argonne campaign

First Army formed up in preparation to advance in the Meuse-Argonne campaign. It consisted of over 600,000 men in I Corps, III Corps, and V Corps. III Corps took the Army's east flank, protecting it as the Army advanced to Montfaucon, then Cunel and Romagne-sous-Montfaucon. The offensive was slow and hampered by inexperience of many of the divisions under the Army's command, though III Corps was effective in protecting its sector. They advanced through September and October, taking a few weeks for rest after the formation of Second United States Army. On 1 November, the First Army went on a general offensive, pushing north to the Meuse River and the Barricourt Ridge. It was successful, pushing German forces back and advancing to the river until the end of the war. Around that time, III Corps received its shoulder sleeve insignia, approved it by telegram, though the insignia would not be officially authorized until 1922. The corps reached the border with Germany on 23 November.

The corps was demobilized in Neuwied, Germany at the close of hostilities. Following the end of World War I, III Corps remained in Europe for several months before it returned to the United States. It was demobilized at Camp Sherman, Ohio.

Army reorganization

As part of an Army reorganization beginning in August 1927 that grouped the new XX, XXI, and XXII Corps, organized in the Regular Army, under the new Seventh Army, also a Regular formation and the successor of the old First Army, as a contingency force staffed by professional soldiers rather than reservists that could immediately take control of forces and respond to any emergency, the III Corps HHC were withdrawn from the Organized Reserve and demobilized on 15 August 1927. Concurrently, all Reserve personnel were relieved from assignment. Less than two months later, however, the Seventh Army was redesignated the new First Army, and the XX, XXI, and XXII Corps as the new I, II, and III Corps, respectively.

III Corps (II)

The second iteration of the III Corps was constituted in the Regular Army as HHC, XXII Corps, allotted to the Third Corps Area, and assigned to the Seventh Army. Redesignated HHC, III Corps on 13 October 1927 and concurrently assigned to the First Army. The designated headquarters location for peacetime organization purposes was Baltimore, Maryland. On 1 October 1933, the corps headquarters was partially activated at Baltimore with Regular personnel from Headquarters, Third Corps Area and Reserve personnel from the corps area at large. Though a "Regular Army Inactive" unit from 1933 to 1940, the corps headquarters was occasionally organized provisionally for short periods using its assigned Reserve officers and staff officers from Headquarters, Third Corps Area. These periods of provisional active auty were generally for CPXs and major maneuvers such as the First Army maneuvers in 1935, 1939, and 1940. The designated mobilization station for the corps headquarters was Camp George G. Meade, Maryland, where it would assume command and control of its assigned subordinate corps troops which would then be mobilizing primarily in the Third Corps Area. However, the III Corps was fully activated on 18 December 1940, less Reserve personnel, at the Presidio of Monterey, California, and concurrently relieved from the First Army and assigned to the Fourth Army. Upon activation, the 8th, 28th, and 29th Divisions were relieved from the troop list and the corps assumed command and control of the 7th and 40th Divisions. The corps Headquarters Company was activated on 10 February 1941 at Fort Ord. The corps participated in the Fourth Army maneuvers in August 1941. After the maneuver, the corps returned to Monterey where it was located on 7 December 1941.

World War II

Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor bringing America into World War II, III Corps remained in the United States, where it was assigned to organize defenses of the West Coast, specifically California, against the threat of attack from Japan. During this time III Corps operated at Monterey, California.

The corps was moved to Fort McPherson, Georgia in early 1942 for training. After a short period, the corps returned to Monterey and on 19 August 1942, it was designated a separate corps, capable of deployment. During the next two years, III Corps would train thousands of troops for combat and participate in corps-level maneuvers, including the Louisiana Maneuvers. The next day Patton, the Third Army commander, warned III Corps that it would likely be ordered to assist. At that time the corps consisted of the 26th and 80th Infantry Divisions and the 4th Armored Division. III Corps was moved north to assist in the relief of Bastogne, Belgium, with the attack commencing at 04:00 on 22 December 1944. The corps advanced north, catching the German forces by surprise on their south flank, cutting them off. The 4th Armored Division was eventually able to reach Bastogne, where the 101st Airborne Division had been surrounded by German forces, and relieve it. During the first 10 days of this action, III Corps liberated more than 100 towns, including Bastogne. This operation was key in halting the German offensive and the eventual drive to the Rhine River. The main purpose of these operations was the testing of new doctrines, organizations, and equipment. On 5 May 1959, the corps was again inactivated. Throughout much of the 1960s, III Corps and its subordinate units trained for rapid deployment to Europe in the event of an outbreak of war there.

During the Vietnam War era, the corps supervised the training and deployment of more than 137 units and detachments to Southeast Asia, including the I and II Field Force staffs. The corps also trained more than 40,000 individual replacements for units in Vietnam, for a total of over 100,000 soldiers trained.

As part of the Army's modernization effort in the 1980s corps units introduced new organizations and equipment including the M1 Abrams tank, M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, AH-64 Apache helicopter, Multiple Launch Rocket System, and Mobile Subscriber Equipment. In 1985, a task force within the 6th Cavalry Brigade was elevated into the Apache Fielding Brigade, "to receive, equip and train, evaluate, and deploy all Army non-Fort Hood Apache helicopter battalions." On August 1, 1986, then-Colonel Malvin Handy was placed in command of the brigade, with the same mission, but a slightly different name: the Apache Training Brigade. Lt Gen Saint "..gave me $36 million and told me to make it happen,” Handy said. The task was daunting, even for an experienced, combat-proven attack pilot like Handy. “I thought, ‘this guy is crazy,’” he said. “I felt like Moses and some guy was handing me the Ten Commandments."

In 1987, III Corps also conducted the largest deployment of forces to Germany since the Second World War, Exercise Reforger '87. During this time, the corps began assisting in the training and support of active and reserve component units. This support involves training guidance, resources, and the maintenance of relationships that extend to wartime affiliations.

Formations in 1972

In 1972 III Corps consisted of the following formations and units:

  • 20px III Corps, Fort Hood, Texas
  • 20px 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas (Operation Reforger formation)
  • 20px 2nd Armored Division, Fort Hood, Texas (Operation Reforger formation)
  • 18px 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized), Fort Polk, Louisiana (Operation Reforger formation)
  • 20px101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky
  • 20px III Corps Artillery, Fort Sill, Oklahoma
  • 20px 75th Field Artillery Brigade, Fort Sill, Oklahoma
  • 20px 212th Field Artillery Brigade, Fort Sill, Oklahoma (Operation Reforger formation)
  • 20px 214th Field Artillery Brigade, Fort Sill, Oklahoma
  • 20px 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Bliss, Texas (Operation Reforger unit)
  • 20px 6th Cavalry Brigade (Air Combat), Fort Hood, Texas
  • 20px 31st Air Defense Artillery Brigade, Fort Hood, Texas
  • 20px 89th Military Police Brigade, Fort Hood, Texas
  • 20px 3rd Signal Brigade (Corps), Fort Hood, Texas
  • 20px 504th Military Intelligence Brigade, Fort Hood, Texas
  • 20px 13th Corps Support Command, Fort Hood, Texas

1990s

Following the end of the Cold War, III Corps headquarters itself saw no major contingencies; however, it saw numerous units under its command deploy to contingencies around the world. III Corps units were sent to Grenada, Panama, Honduras, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq. In the fall of 1990, two 6th Cavalry Brigade (Air Combat) units deployed to Iraq during Operation Desert Shield. One of those units was 2nd Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment, a Chinook battalion from Fort Hood. Other corps units also provided humanitarian support for Operation Restore Hope in Somalia. III Corps elements supported Operation Joint Endeavor in Bosnia and Herzegovina as well. In 2011, it took over command of the 1st Armored Division; both divisions had previously been part of V Corps in Germany.

The corps headquarters saw its first combat deployment since the Second World War in 2004, when it deployed to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom. There, III Corps headquarters assumed duties as Headquarters Multi-National Corps – Iraq, relieving V Corps. III Corps served as the administrative command for 2,500 soldiers of the Multi-National Force – Iraq command element, providing operational direction into 2005, when it was returned to Fort Hood, relieved by XVIII Airborne Corps. III Corps has for many years participated in an exchange program which sees a Canadian Army officer appointed as a deputy commanding general. Notably, Peter Devlin deployed with the corps to Iraq in 2005.

thumb|left|President Barack Obama speaks outside of III Corps headquarters, Fort Hood, Texas

In December 2006, the corps returned to Iraq for a second time to serve as commanding headquarters for Multi-National Corps Iraq. During this 15-month deployment, the corps took command of the force at its largest with Iraq War troop surge. The corps conducted a similar mission to its first deployment, focusing on providing personnel management, training, communications, convoy escort, and other duties to support the commanding elements of Multi-National Force Iraq. III Corps fulfilled this mission until February 2008, when it returned home, again relieved by XVIII Airborne Corps.

In 2009, the corps began a number of training initiatives with the Republic of Korea Army. These included Operation Key Resolve, a command post exercise simulating major, high intensity combat operations. The exercises were held in Yongin, South Korea. These operations were designed to keep the corps familiar with commanding during large-scale conventional warfare, as opposed to counter-insurgency tactics it employed during its two tours in Iraq. Upon return to the United States, the corps conducted similar exercises at Fort Hood.

On 5 November 2009, a gunman opened fire in the Soldier Readiness Center of Fort Hood, killing 13 people and wounding 30 others. Nidal Hasan, a Muslim U.S. Army major and psychiatrist, was alleged to be the gunman. He was shot several times and then arrested by civilian police officers Sergeants Mark Todd and Kimberly Munley. Much of the subsequent investigation was handled by III Corps, as the soldiers killed were under the corps' chain of command.

III Corps, commanded by LTG Robert W. Cone, assumed its final Iraq mission from I Corps from Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Washington in February 2010. As the core element of United States Forces – Iraq headquarters, III Corps oversaw a theater-wide transition from full-spectrum operations to stability operations. The corps changed the counterinsurgency (COIN) fight dynamic from partnered combat operations, led by brigade combat teams, to training, advising, and assisting operations, led by brigades organized as advise and assist brigades. The corps also completed the transition to complete Iraqi lead for security operations. During the deployment, III Corps reduced the amount of aviation assets in Iraq, resulting in one enhanced combat aviation brigade with six maneuver battalions having responsibility for the entire joint operations area. III Corps also oversaw the reduction of the force in Iraq from 110,000 to 50,000 U.S. personnel by 1 Sept. 2010, which established the conditions for the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the transition to Operation New Dawn. XVIII Airborne Corps from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, assumed the Iraq follow-on mission from III Corps in February 2011.

The corps saw its first action in Afghanistan when it deployed to Kabul in early April 2013. The corps, under the command of LTG Mark A. Milley, replaced the U.S. V Corps from Stuttgart, Germany, in May 2013 and assumed the mission of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Joint Command, or IJC, which was responsible for day-to-day operations throughout Afghanistan. During the corps' deployment, IJC oversaw Milestone 13/Tranche 5 ceremony on 18 June 2013, which marked the official transition of full responsibility for nationwide security operations from ISAF to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. After the Milestone 13 ceremony, IJC transitioned from Coalition-led combat operations to Afghan-led combat operations and Coalition forces providing training, advice, and assistance. The ANSF, officially less than three years old, reached its peak of more than 350,000 members and conducted more than 70 major operations in more than 22 provinces. In November 2013, IJC forces provided technical support to the ANSF as it secured the Loya Jirga, a country-wide gathering of Afghan local leaders and officials, in Kabul. The Loya Jirga successfully laid the groundwork for a U.S.-Afghanistan Bilateral Security Agreement. During the deployment, III Corps also oversaw the drawdown of U.S. forces from more than 80,000 to 34,000 by 1 Feb. 2014. XVIII Airborne Corps from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, assumed the ISAF Joint Command mission from III Corps in March 2014.

On 13 October 2020, the III Corps commander launched Operation People First at Fort Hood, Fort Bliss, Fort Carson, Fort Riley, and other III Corps units.

In 2021, about 1,000 soldiers of III Corps were selected in order to assist with the processing and housing of Special Immigrant Visa applicants after the 2021 Kabul airlift, moving task forces to Fort Bliss and Fort McCoy, Wisconsin.

Organization

thumb|center|1020px|III Armored Corps organization as of May 2026

  • 35px III Armored Corps, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 25px III Armored Corps Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 23px 1st Infantry Division, at Fort Riley (KS)
  • 23px 1st Cavalry Division, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 25px 1st Armored Division, at Fort Bliss (TX)
  • 25px 3rd Cavalry Regiment, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 23px 75th Field Artillery Brigade, at Fort Sill (OK)
  • 25px 36th Engineer Brigade, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 30x30px 11th Corps Signal Brigade, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 25px 504th Military Intelligence Brigade, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 25px 13th Armored Corps Sustainment Command, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 25px 1st Medical Brigade, at Fort Hood (TX)
  • 25px 89th Military Police Brigade, at Fort Hood (TX)

List of Commanding Generals

  • William M. Wright June 1916 – July 1918 – October 1993 – 2012
  • Mark A. Milley 2012 – 2014
  • Sean B. MacFarland 2014 – 2017
  • Paul E. Funk II 2017 – 2019
  • Robert P. White 2019 – 2022
  • Sean C. Bernabe 2022 – 2024
  • Kevin Admiral 2024 – present

Honors

The corps received five campaign streamers in World War I and four campaign streamers in World War II.

Unit decorations

{| class="wikitable" style="float:left;"

|-

! Ribbon

! Award

! Year

! Notes

|-

||50px

||Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)

||2004–2005

||for service in Central Asia

|-

||50px

||Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)

||2007–2008

||for service in Central Asia

|-

||50px

||Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)

||2010–2011

||for service in Central Asia

|-

||50px

||Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)

||2012–2013

||for service in Central Asia

|-

|50px

|Joint Meritorious Unit Award

|2019-2020

|for service in Iraq / Syria

|}

Campaign streamers

{| class="wikitable" style="float:left;"

|-

! Conflict

! Streamer

! Year(s)

|-

|| World War I

|| Aisne-Marne

|| 1918

|-

|| World War I

|| Oise-Marne

|| 1918

|-

|| World War I

|| Meuse-Argonne

|| 1918

|-

|| World War I

|| Champagne

|| 1918

|-

|| World War I

|| Lorraine

|| 1918

|-

|| World War II

|| Normandy

|| 1944

|-

|| World War II

|| Northern France

|| 1944

|-

|| World War II

|| Rhineland

|| 1945

|-

|| World War II

|| Central Europe

|| 1945

|-

|| Operation Iraqi Freedom

|| Iraq

|| 2004–2005

|-

|| Operation Iraqi Freedom

|| Iraq

|| 2007–2008

|-

|| Operation Iraqi Freedom

|| Iraq

|| 2009–2010

|-

|| Operation New Dawn

|| Iraq

|| 2010–2011

|}

References

Sources

  • III Armored Corps Home Page – official site
  • United States Army Center of Military History
  • GlobalSecurity.org page on III Corps
  • Gen. Saint Chosen to Command Army in Europe [https://apnews.com/article/1add13e9c5fdf0ffd7ae197d04243802]