I probably haven’t mentioned it on the blog yet but the Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger (KNIL), which translates to English as “The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army”, has been a White Whale force for me. I have longed for the tropical Dutch for a long time like Captain Ahab longed to bag the white whale Moby Dick. When I started playing and collecting Bolt Action seriously in 2019 I developed a taste for exotic and forgotten forces. At that point I had done up an Imperial Japanese Army force as my first comeback army. In my research I came across the fact that the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) and Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) had duplicates of many of their forces as they both wanted to be the strongest and most trusted branch of the Military.

One thing lead to another and I ended up reading about the creation and exploits of the IJA and IJN paratrooper forces. One particular campaign caught my eye, the Japanese conquest of the Dutch colonies. The colonies were located in the Dutch East Indies which are the modern-day countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Western New Guinea. I found tales of a large, motivated, yet under equipped and trained defense force that stood against the Japanese aggression. This 35,000 strong defense force, the KNIL, fought valiantly against an aggressive Japanese foe. The Dutch colonies stood alone as they had been cut off from their home country which had previously been invaded by the Germans. The IJN had deployed highly trained paratroopers in the campaign and the defenders greatly frustrated them. In the end the Japanese were able to conquer the colonies but not without difficulty. Many of the KNIL fled into the jungles to continue a guerilla war against the invaders. Many more of the men escaped to Australia to reorganize and continue the fight.

Interestingly, driven by the necessity of being severed from their home country, the KNIL had a mishmash of unique equipment and equipment from all over the world. One particular vehicle, the locally produced Braat Overvalwagen captured my attention. It’s boxy and utilitarian charm sucked me in. I knew I had to have at least one, if not a platoon.

In my early searches I found that Mad Bob Miniatures produced the Overvalwagen in resin. I promptly ordered one. I was able to locate and acquire several other vehicles including the Vickers M1936 “Dutchman.” The KNIL had 24 of these Vickers light tanks in their arsenal. I am a sucker for a good Vickers. Alvis Straussler AC3D armored cars and Carden- Lloyd artillery tractors pushed my interest even farther into KNIL territory. After all I am a connoisseur of fine Interwar and early war period vehicles and equipment… Interestingly after Holland fell to the Germans the Dutch colonies placed large orders for American arms and vehicles. Much of the equipment had been shipped or delivered by the time the Japanese invaded. Unfortunately, the colonies fell before their much of their heavy equipment arrived and it was diverted to Australia.

There is some evidence that the KNIL had 1,999 American built Johnson M1941 semi-automatic rifles in their arsenal by the time of the invasion. The Johnson M1941 is most well known as the unsuccessful competitor to the M1 Garand. From a unique equipment lover’s standpoint this is delightful. Now if I could find a KNIL miniature armed with them. It would make for a flavorful addition to a Chain of Command force.

I was then faced with a large issue, infantry. Unless I wanted to convert a large amount of infantry I was not going to be able to field any as no one made them. Enter May 40 Miniatures. Founded in 2016 May 40 Miniatures is a passion project and company run by its owner Sander. Named after the German invasion of the Netherlands on May 10th of 1940 the company started out by making WWII European Dutch 28mm miniatures. The company also served to honor Sander’s great uncle, Wilhelmus, who was killed in action on May 11, 1940 defending his country from the Nazi invasion. Eventually the Dutch needed a foe and Sander ran a successful Kick Starter for early war Fallschirmjager a la the invasion of the Low Countries and Crete. Both lines of minis are on my “to buy” list. The sculpts are full of character and are well researched. They also seem to be in very natural and aesthetically pleasing poses which can make or break a miniature for me.

After following May 40’s social media for a while I learned they planned to release KNIL at some point in the future. Fast forward to October of 2023 and Sander made good on his promise to commission and release proper KNIL miniatures for us to enjoy.

I jumped at the occasion and calculated what I would need to run a proper Chain of Command platoon. Bam! Pledged!

I pledged for a platoon, plus an extra squad, 3x extra SMGs, 3x extra rifles, Command pack 2, the medium mortar, and the Bohler 47mm Anti-Tank Gun. That should give me enough riflemen although I think I may add another pack just in case. It’s always the riflemen that get you… there are never enough.

Below are some of the unlocked stretch goals as of 9 days remaining!

As luck would have it I was able to chat with Sander on several occasions. From the get-go it was obvious he had a passion for the military history of his country. His attention to detail was second to none and he was very willing to share his source photographs and pictures of his own Dutch reenacting kit. I was struck by his desire to share the stories of World War II engagements that do not make it to the typical tabletop. Furthermore, it was clear he thinks like a wargamer with attention paid to the things that we like such as squad composition and weapon choices. I was also very impressed at Sanders interaction and responsiveness to the community. He clearly wants to bring the stories of the KNIL to the tabletop.

For those of you who like to consume other types of media Sander did an interview with Cast Dice all about the KNIL and the Kick Starter. At 30 minutes long it is an easy and informative listen. On Table Top also did an in-depth unboxing of the miniatures on their YouTube channel. I highly suggest you check them both out.

Below is a selection of Sanders personal KNIL miniatures from the Kick Starter. He put together a painting guide as well for those of us who like that sort of thing. I have to say the pictures of the miniatures in the jungle terrain have my jimmies very well rustled.

I have to reiterate I appreciated his ability to communicate with the backers of the project. I’ve been a part of Kick Starter campaigns that pretty much go dark after you back them. But Sander has kept us up to date and continues to drip up photos and sneak peeks of KNIL kit in the works.

Needless to say I am very excited for this exotic dream force to become a reality. Once the minis arrive at my door next year I plan on jumping on them ASAP.

If you’re seeing this before November 5th, 2023 or are looking to be a late backer check out the Kick Starter here – https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/may40miniatures/knil-1936-1942.