3rd Division (Imperial Japanese Army)

3rd Division
Soldiers of 6th Inf. Regt., 3rd Division crossing the Bái hé River during Ichang Operation, 8 May 1940.
Active	1888–1945
Country	Empire of Japan
Branch	Imperial Japanese Army
Type	Infantry
Garrison/HQ	Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
Nickname(s)	"Lucky Division"
Engagements	First Sino-Japanese War Russo-Japanese War Siberian Intervention Shandong Incident
Commanders
Notable commanders	Taro Katsura Yoshimichi Hasegawa Yusaku Uehara Nobuyoshi Muto

The 3rd Division (第3師団, Dai-san shidan^?) was an infantry division in the Imperial Japanese Army. Its call sign was the Lucky Division (幸兵団, Kō-heidan^?).

The 3rd Division was formed in Nagoya in January 1871 as the Nagoya Garrison (名古屋鎮台, Nagoya chindai^?), 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.