“The Spearhead: The 3rd Armored Division”

The U.S. Army’s 3rd Armored Division established their reputation on the battlefields of Europe in WWII as one of the greatest fighting units ever fielded by the United States. Landing on Omaha Beach shortly after D Day, they were in continuous combat until war’s end. Along the way, the picked up the moniker “Spearhead” for leading the U.S. First Army’s drive across France, Belgium and into Germany. They also picked up more casualties than any other U.S. Armored Division.

Major contributors to their success were extensive training and outstanding leadership. They underwent almost three years of combat training, before being committed to battle. Their senior leadership was experienced, many having seen combat in WWI. Most notable was their commander, Major General Maurice Rose.

The son of a rabbi, Rose enlisted as a private in the Army at age 17. He saw extensive combat in France during WW I, where he was wounded in action. He served with the 1st and 2nd Armored Divisions in WWII, seeing combat in North Africa and Sicily, before taking command of the 3rd Armored. Leading from the front, Rose was considered a rising star and the best Armored Division Commander in the U.S. Army. On March 30, 1945, while reconnoitering ahead of his own troops, he was killed at the age of 45.

Among their accomplishments during the second World War:
• They were the first to invade Germany since Napoleon.
• They fired the first American artillery shell to land on German soil.
• They were the first unit to pass the German border.
• They were the first to capture a German town.
• Their units were the first to breach the Siegfried Line.
• Their anti-aircraft gunners became the first Americans to shoot down a German plane from German soil.

When WW II ended and the Army began downsizing, the Division was deactivated in November 1945. But that was short lived, and the 3^rd Armored was called back to duty in 1947, as a training unit at Ft. Knox, Kentucky.

However, as the Cold War began to brew, in 1955, the Division was shipped back to Germany, as a combat ready unit, to bolster the US defense of Western Europe. Had a Russian invasion occurred, true to their heritage, the 3^rd Armored Division would again have been the US Army’s “Spearhead”. It was during this period that Elvis Presley served with the division. They remained in Germany, “permanently” as a show of America’s strength and commitment to defend freedom.

However, “permanently” changed in late 1990 as trouble loomed in the Middle East. The Division was deployed to Saudi Arabia, then into Iraq and combat. Living up to their nickname, they spearheaded the attacking U.S. Army forces. Their combat mission accomplished, they returned to their home bases in Germany. With the fall of Communism and the reunification of Germany, the Cold War had subsided. No longer needed to defend Western Europe, the division was again deactivated. Their colors were furled in 1992, and they have remained that way for the past 32 years.

My uncle Lawrence J. Maffia served with the 3rd Armored in WWII. He is featured in the museum’s documentary, “5,000 Miles From Home.”

To view a YouTube documentary about the 3rd Armor Division, click here.

For more on “5,000 Miles From Home,” click here.