The 3rd Division was a unit of the Reichswehr.
In the Order of 31 July 1920 for the Reduction of the Army (to comply with the upper limits on the size of the military contained in the Treaty of Versailles), it was determined that a division would be established in every Wehrkreis (military district) by 1 October 1920. The 3rd Division was formed in January 1921 out of the Reichswehr's 3rd, 6th, and 15th Brigades, all part of the former Übergangsheer (Transition Army).
It consisted of 3 infantry regiments, an artillery regiment, an engineering battalion, a signals battalion, a transportation battalion, and a medical battalion.
The commander of Wehrkreis III was simultaneously the commander of the 3rd Division. For the leadership of the troops, an Infanterieführer and an Artillerieführer were appointed, both subordinated to the commander of the division.
The unit ceased to exist as such after October 1934 and its subordinate units were transferred to one of the 21 new divisions created in that year.
The divisional headquarters was in Berlin.