1814–1942 The KNIL was formed by royal decree on 14 September 1814. It was not part of the
Royal Netherlands Army, but a separate military arm specifically formed for service in the
Netherlands East Indies. Its establishment coincided with the Dutch drive to expand colonial rule from the 17th century area of control to the far larger territories constituting the Dutch East Indies seventy years later. The KNIL was involved in many campaigns against indigenous groups in the area including the
Padri War (1821–1845), the
Java War (1825–1830), crushing the final resistance of
Bali inhabitants to colonial rule in 1849, and the prolonged
Aceh War (1873–1904). In 1894,
Lombok and
Karangasem were
annexed in response to reports of the local Balinese aristocracy oppressing the native
Sasak people. Bali was finally taken under full control with the
Dutch intervention in Bali (1906) and the final
Dutch intervention in Bali (1908). In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the KNIL resumed the conquest of the Indonesian archipelago. After 1904 the Netherlands East Indies were considered
pacified, with no large-scale armed opposition to Dutch rule until
World War II, and the KNIL served a mainly defensive role protecting the Dutch East Indies from the possibility of foreign invasion. Once the archipelago was considered pacified the KNIL was mainly involved with military policing tasks. To ensure a sizeable European military segment in the KNIL and reduce costly recruitment in Europe, the colonial government introduced obligatory military service for all resident male conscripts in the European legal class in 1917. In 1922 a supplemental legal enactment introduced the creation of the
Home Guard () for European conscripts older than 32.
World War II Dutch forces in the Netherlands East Indies were severely weakened by the
defeat and occupation of the Netherlands itself, by
Nazi Germany, in 1940. The KNIL was cut off from external Dutch assistance, except by Royal Netherlands Navy units. The KNIL, hastily and inadequately, attempted to transform into a modern military force able to protect the Dutch East Indies from foreign invasion. By December 1941, Dutch forces in Indonesia numbered around 85,000 personnel: regular troops consisted of about 1,000 officers and 34,000 enlisted soldiers, of whom 28,000 were indigenous. The remainder were made up of locally organised militia, territorial guard units and civilian auxiliaries. The KNIL air force, (
Royal Netherlands East Indies Air Force; ML-KNIL) numbered 389 planes of all types, but was largely outclassed by superior Japanese planes. The Royal Netherlands Navy Air Service, or MLD, also had significant forces in the NEI. During the
Dutch East Indies campaign of 1941–42, by forces of the Empire of Japan, most of the KNIL and other Allied forces were quickly defeated. Most European soldiers, which in practice included all able bodied
Indo-European males, were interned by the Japanese as
POWs. 25% of the POWs did not survive their internment. A handful of soldiers, mostly indigenous personnel, mounted guerrilla campaigns against the Japanese. These were usually unknown to, and unassisted by, the Allies until the end of the war. During early 1942, some KNIL personnel escaped to Australia. Some indigenous personnel were interned in Australia under suspicion of sympathies with the Japanese. The remainder began a long process of re-grouping. In late 1942, a failed
attempt to land in East Timor, to reinforce
Australian commandos waging a guerrilla campaign ended with the loss of 60 Dutch personnel. Four "Netherlands East Indies" squadrons (the
RAAF-NEI squadrons) were formed from ML-KNIL personnel, under the auspices of the
Royal Australian Air Force, with Australian ground staff. KNIL infantry forces (much like their
counterparts in the UK), were augmented by recruitment among Dutch expatriates around the world and by colonial troops from as far away as the
Dutch West Indies. During 1944–45, some small units saw action in the
New Guinea campaign and
Borneo campaign.
Camp Victory Just north of
Casino, New South Wales, a camp was established in 1942 for the KNIL. Originally a stock reserve, it was established by the
7th Australian Division when they returned from serving in the
North Africa and before the transferred to fighting in the
South West Pacific. The KNIL troops established workshops, canteens and training buildings, while most of the accommodation was in tents. The camp was renamed to
Camp Victory, to show the intent on the recapture of the Dutch East Indies from Japanese Occupation. Initially used by the
1st_Infantry_Battalion_(KNIL). This consisted of Surinamese and Dutch Antilles soldiers, evacuated infantry soldiers from Java and Ambon and a Technical Battalion. For a short period, a Papuan Battalion was raised and trained as infantry at Camp Victory for service in
Western New Guinea. In 1944, aviation training commenced at Casino Airport with airman from newly liberated regions of the Netherlands. Upon the declaration of the Indonesian Republic, the Dutch soldiers in that battalion interned and imprisoned 500 of their Indonesian native comrades within the camp. Harsh treatment and penalties were issued out by the Dutch on any independence seeking soldiers. This led to the deaths of two KNIL native soldiers; one was a possible suicide and the other was a protest leader. This brought about condemnation from Australian locals, who forced the Australian authorities to repatriate all the imprisoned soldiers, despite being reluctant to heed earlier requests for assistance.
Camp Darley Darley Camp had originally been established in the 1930s as an Australian Army training facility. By mid-1942, with growing numbers of Dutch evacuees arriving in Melbourne, the camp was made available to the Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) by the Australian military authorities. It became one of the key centres for hosting, rehabilitating, and training Dutch troops who had escaped from Java, Sumatra, Timor, and surrounding regions. These included not only Dutch-born personnel but also Indo-European officers and enlisted men. Some had been evacuated by sea on KPM merchant ships; others had made hazardous escapes by air or smaller vessels. At Darley Camp, they received equipment, medical care, basic supplies, and updated training aligned with Allied operations. It operated as a reception and transit facility for KNIL personnel evacuated from Southeast Asia. Also as an initial training site for Dutch troops, including drilling, tactics, and language familiarisation. There was a depot for clothing, medical inspection, and administrative reorganisation. After this, it acted as a point of reassignment for personnel to move across to units across Queensland and New South Wales, including those attached to Allied operations
Camp Columbia This was a base at
Wacol,
Brisbane. It was built and served as the headquarters for the
Sixth_US_Army and accommodation for American soldiers. As the war progressed further into the Pacific, it was transferred to the Netherlands East Indies Government In Exile. It housed the
Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA) and
Netherlands East Indies Forces Intelligence Service (NEIFIS). It also served as the headquarters for KNIL forces within Australia. Women recruited into
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Corps (VK-KNIL) first served at Camp Columbia and trained at local hospitals before serving elsewhere in Australia and across the East Indies.
1945–1950 Following World War II, the KNIL was used in
two large military campaigns in 1947 and 1948 to re-establish Dutch control of Indonesia. During the
Indonesian War of Independence the KNIL trained the Dutch-born conscripts that arrived in the Dutch East Indies and made them familiar with the way how battles were fought in the colony. The KNIL and its
Ambonese auxiliaries have been accused of committing
war crimes during this "police action". Dutch efforts to re-establish their colony failed and Netherlands recognition of Indonesian sovereignty came on 27 December 1949. On 26 January 1950, elements of the KNIL were involved in an
abortive coup in
Bandung planned by
Raymond Westerling and
Sultan Hamid II. The coup failed and only accelerated the dissolution of the federal
Republic of the United States of Indonesia. The KNIL was disbanded by 26 July 1950 with its indigenous personnel being given the option of demobilising or joining the newly formed
Indonesian military. However, efforts to integrate former KNIL units were impeded by mutual distrust between the predominantly Ambonese KNIL troops and the
Javanese-dominated Republican military, leading to clashes at
Makassar in April and the attempted secession of an independent
Republic of South Maluku (RMS) in July. These revolts were suppressed by November 1950 and approximately 12,500 Ambonese KNIL personnel and their families opted for temporary resettlement in the Netherlands. Following this, the KNIL ceased to exist but its traditions are maintained by the
Regiment Van Heutsz of the modern
Royal Netherlands Army. At the time of disbandment the KNIL numbered 65,000, of whom 26,000 were incorporated into the new
Indonesian Army and should be received with the same rank. Some of them later in the 70s reached the rank of
Major General in Indonesian Army. It is estimated that around 39,000 of the remaining KNIL troops who majority of whom came from
Ambon, took the option of retiring or joining the
Royal Dutch Armed Forces and serving in Papua or Suriname. Some of them were involved in the Dutch contingent in
Korean War (1950–1953). ==Recruiting==