KNIL (Royal Netherlands Indies Army)

World War II Other Military Units
#61

Hi Jabu,

I’m not sure if the KNIL used the 12cm Howitzer Krupp M.14, as I have not seen any references to it in the Orders of Battle shown below.

World War II Armed Forces
Orders of Battle and Organizations
created and maintained by Dr. Leo Niehorster
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/index.htm
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/000_admin/000oob.htm
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/__nl.htm

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/_knil_army.html

Java

Mobilized Order of Battle
Netherlands East Indies Army
1st Military Department and Ist Division
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/01-afd.htm

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
2nd Military Department and IInd Division
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/02-afd.htm

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
3rd Military Department and IIIrd Division
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/03-afd.htm

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Army Aviation
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/army_air.html

Sumatra

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – North Sumatra
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_sumatra_north.html

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – Sumatra’s West Coast and Tapanoeli
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_sumatra_west.html
(Shows 2 - 180mm L/46 guns at Emmahaven)

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – Riouw and Dependencies
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_sumatra_riouw.html

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – South Sumatra
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_sumatra_south.html

Borneo

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – West Borneo Department
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_borneo_west.html

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – South and East Borneo Departments
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_borneo_south.html

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Local Command – Balikpapan
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_borneo_balikpapan.html
(Shows 4 - 120mm L/40 Naval guns at Kampong Baroe) - see also:
http://groups.msn.com/KNIL-history/knilcoastartillery.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=43

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Local Command – Tarakan
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_borneo_tarakan.html
(Shows 2 - 120mm L/40 Naval guns at Karoengan) see also:
http://groups.msn.com/KNIL-history/knilcoastartillery.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=43

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Local Command – Samarinda
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_borneo_samarinda.html

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Local Command – Samarinda II Air Base
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_borneo_samarinda2.html

Celebes and Manado

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – Celebes and Manado
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_celebes.html

Timor and Dependencies

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – Timor and Dependencies
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_timor.html

Moluccas

Mobilized Order of Battle
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Territorial Command – Moluccas
12 December 1941
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/016_netherlands/41-12-08/tc_moluccas.html
(Shows 3 - 180mm L/46 naval guns at Nonesaive and 4 - 150mm L/40 turreted naval guns at Goenoeng Nona)
see also:
http://groups.msn.com/KNIL-history/knilcoastartillery.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=42

SEE ALSO:

H.I.H. and H.I.H. Siderius
Dutch offshoots of Rheinmetall,
1923-1934
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius1.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius2.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius3.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius4.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius5.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius6.html
http://www.overvalwagen.com/HIHSiderius7.html

tom´s Webseite
http://www.ww2technik.de/
Die japanische Militärmacht 1930 bis 1945
http://www.ww2technik.de/artikelmainj.htm
Artilleriewaffen:
http://www.ww2technik.de/jap%20artillerie.htm

TAKI’S HOME PAGE
IMPERIAL JAPANESE ARMY PAGE
http://www3.plala.or.jp/takihome/
ARTILLERY
http://www3.plala.or.jp/takihome/artillery.htm
http://www3.plala.or.jp/takihome/krupp.htm#12

#62

Hi George,

I thank you for information.
They me added very.
I work now over material about catured field and AT artillery at IJA between 1931-1945.

Best regards,
Jabu

#63

Dear George,

Probably several Vickers Crossley Armored Cars used by KNIL units during campaign in Netherlands East Indie at 1942.

http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:Upe0gj_2OpYJ:www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/alvis_straussler.html+Japanese+Vickers+Crossley+Armored+Cars&hl=pl&ct=clnk&cd=4&gl=pl&client=firefox-a

You know something on this subject? Maybe you ow how much vehicles this type had KNIL at 1942? And what unit had Vickers Crossley AC?

I will be grateful for help

Regards,
Jabu

P.S.
Probably this type armored cars captured by then Japanese at 1942.
But it this only presumption, and was one should this check…

Early, Japanese In 1925 year interested this type vehicle, or offered order.
In reality IJA bought them before Manchurian Incident, probably late
in 1920s. I think: late in 1927.
IJN ordered them after Manchurian Incident happened. So, it was
late in 1931.

Probably in 1927 IJA bought three cars.

Probably in November or December 1931 IJN bought nine cars.

In IJN Crossley Armored Cars called it Type Bi or Type Vi Armored
Car “毘式?甲?動?”.

Bi or Vi - abbrev from name Vikkasu (Vickers).

Bi and Vi they are the same at Japanese (sign kanji - 毘).

To write better probably – Type Vi.

I don’t know what the IJA called it officially.

Somewhere, western books pass that Japanese marked Vickers Crossley
Armored Cars:

Type 25 “Dowa”, or Type 87 Armored Car.

It is, probably a mistake.

Dowa will be Dowa Motorcar Company Ltd. in Manchuria. It produced armored
cars for Manchukuo Army. But, it has nothing to do with Vickers
Crossley Armored Car.

#64

Hi Jabu,

I have not seen any mention of Vickers Crossley Armored Cars being used by KNIL units during campaign in Netherlands East Indies in 1942.

AFAIK - listing of tank and armored car types used by the KNIL:

Vickers Carden-Loyd M1936 “Dutchman” Light Tank
Carden-Lloyd M1931 light tank
Marmon-Herrington Light Tank

Alvis Straussler AC3D Armored Car
Marmon-Herrington Mk.III Armored Car
“Overalwagen” Armored Car
White M3A1 Scout Car
Krupp Gepanzerte Radfahrzeug

Below are some related links that may help you.

Good Luck :slight_smile:

George

Dutch (KNIL) Armoured Units in the Dutch East Indies, 1941-1942
by Tom Womack
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/KNIL_armour.html

British Armoured Units in the Dutch East Indies, 1941-1942
British 3rd Hussar Tank Squadron in the Dutch East Indies, 1942
Short excerpt from the book The Galloping Third
by Hector Bolitho
with Appendix: The British Tank Unit in the East Indies
by Jacques Jost
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/british_armour.html

Pacific War 1941-1945 (New Forum)
http://www.network54.com/Forum/594514/

KNIL-history
Stellan Bojerud
http://groups.msn.com/KNIL-history/meddelanden.msnw
http://groups.msn.com/KNIL-history/whatisthepurposewiththosepages.msnw
Cavalry Squadron Organization 1941
http://groups.msn.com/KNIL-history/knilcavalry.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=76

Overvalwagens!
Kaleidoscope of military vehicles of the Dutch East and West Indies before 1945
http://www.overvalwagen.com/
http://www.network54.com/Forum/330333/
A.F. Eric Nuyt
nuyt@freemail.nl <nuyt@freemail.nl>

Marmon-Herrington Military Vehicles
http://www.geocities.com/marmonherrington/
Marmon-Herrington military vehicles in service: the Netherlands
http://www.geocities.com/marmonherrington/nl.html
Hanno Spoelstra
hl.spoelstra@inter.nl.net <hl.spoelstra@inter.nl.net>

Henk of Holland
South African Marmon-Herringtons in Service with the K.N.I.L.
by Hans Heesakkers
http://henk.fox3000.com/NedIndie.htm
Henk Timmerman
henkofholland(stop-spam)@hccnet.nl <henkofholland(stop-spam)@hccnet.nl>

MLU (Maple Leaf Up) Forum
http://www.mapleleafup.org/forums/
MLU Armour Forum
http://www.mapleleafup.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=7
http://www.mapleleafup.org/forums/showthread.php?threadid=9244

#65

Hi,

many thanks you for help. I also never earlier did not hear, that KNIL bought and it used by Vickers-Crossley AC.

I have certainty now, that this is probably mistake :wink:
I thank you for recommended internet-sides,

Regards,
Jabu

#66

very, very interesting topic here. Especially if you are Indonesian or Dutch. I spent much of times reading for this topics. Older brother of my mother was a member of KNIL, he came from northern celebes, when Japan occupied Dutch Colony, he went into jungle and hides with few of his comrades. When Japan arrived, they were searching for those local KNIL and have them executed. It was not known whether or not he was captured, but he never managed to return home.
The catch was, my father, when Japan arrived, recruited by force, joined into so called Kaigun-ho (navy auxillary). He and some other local recruits had to assist the japanese in searching those hidden KNILs in the area. According to my father, they were managed to engaged those hidden KNILS in few occassions, and they (KNIL) always runs deeper into the forest.

#67

Hello,

I have been very interested for some time in the KNIL and particularly the NEI campaign on Celebes. Recently I acquired and read (in translation) Nortier’s new history of the war on Celebes, Ambon, etc. There was indeed a fair amount of guerilla resistance on Celebes, although much of it was half-hearted and most of it ineffective. Nortier records that apart from one or two instances in early February '42, the Japanese did not bother much with pursuing the remnants of the KNIL who had fled into the mountains & jungles of Celebes.

I’d be very interested to find more material on this part of the war.

The volunteer auxiliaries were called heiho, BTW. But they would have likely indeed been controlled by Kaigun, since the Imperial Japanese Navy had administrative control—through the Minseibu–of Celebes.

#68

it is correct,. for Sumatra, Java, and parts of sumbawas were administered by Imperial Army, most of auxillaries formed into Gyugun or Heiho,…but Celebes, Maluccas, Halmahera (perhaps parts of Philipines) were under Imperial Navy,… and they formed Kaigun-ho

#69

Hello,

Thank you very much for this information.

I would be interested to know if there are good records of personnel serving with KNIL under Capts. Anthonio & others at Kendari, Celebes when the war broke out? Not OOB, which I have, but more detailed records of specific troops there.

Also, records of war crimes investigations conducted there by the Dutch after the war?

Thanks in advance

#70

Hi gumalangi and KMDjr :slight_smile:

Welcome to the forum guys and thanks for posting the interesting information.

Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941-1942 website
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/

The Fall of Menado, January 1942
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/menado.html

The city of Menado is situated at the Minahassa Peninsula in the north of Celebes Island and it is today an important trade harbor in Indonesia…

The capture of Makassar, February 1942
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/makassar.html

The city of Makassar is located at the southwest coast of Celebes Island and is today one of the most important harbors in Southeast Asia. The Indonesians called it Ujung Pandang…

The Fall of Kendari, January 1942
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/kendari.html

Kendari is a small town on the southeast peninsula of Celebes facing the Banda Sea towards Amboina Island. In World War II was Kendari considered as a very important air and naval base by both sides, Japanese and Allied. Especially significant for the war effort in advancing south, Kendari airfield was an important objective from which planes (bombers) could interdict routes between Australia and the Netherlands East Indies, also able to bomb major centres on east Java and Timor Islands, like for instance Soerabaja and Koepang…

Veterans of the Dutch East Indies Campaign
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/veterans.html

De geest van de Hollander - “The Ghost of the Dutchman”

After the fall of Celebes Island, February 1942, a small KNIL detachment, consisting of two Dutch officers (Lieutenant De Jong - commander and Lieutenant Van Dalen), four Dutch sergeants and 150 KNIL soldiers, continued with a guerilla war against the Japanese. They carried out several successful ambush attacks in Kolonodale area, killing many Japanese soldiers, but they were eventually all either captured or killed. Both officers were taken in captivity on 19 August 1942, and promptly beheaded after they refused to say that they regretted what they did to the Imperial Japanese Army. The only who managed to save himself by hiding in the dense jungle was KNIL Sergeant Jan Klinkhamer. Japanese offered a reward of 100 gulders to the local population for betraying him or handing-over. Only few local Indonesians knew where is he hiding and brought him food on several occasions. Other natives had spotted him twice vaguely in the foggy woods, and, therefore, started to call him “The Ghost of the Dutchman”. He successfully stayed hiding in the jungle until 1945, when natives have finally informed him that Japan had capitulated. Only then he came from his hideout in the jungle, after spending more than three years in it.

In Holland, about five years ago, a TV Documentary about Sgt. Klinkhamer and his remarkable achievement was broadcasted on the television in the memory of the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II. The title of the documentary was “De geest van de Hollander”. Now, this story has been told to me by the first time by Mr. Frans Zantvoort, who had watched that documentary few years ago. We are both kind of interested if anyone has any more information about him or his guerilla detachment. We are also trying to find out, if any book about him and his experience has ever been published. If you have anything what might help us, please contact the webmaster at his usual e-mail address [imperia555@hotmail.com].

#71

hi there george,… ths,. very informative and interesting,… Me and my parent came from area not far from Manado,… base on the story of the attached link,…it was correct that my uncle and his comrades ran into Tomohon Highland and never came back.

by the way,… Ujung Pandang was renamed again to Makassar,…

cheers

#72

You’re welcome gumalangi,

Yes, it looks like they only had one survivor from that group. Your uncle may have been killed in the fighting, but even if he was one of those that were captured, he may have died in captivity.

I have an aunt from Menado, Celebes. She married my mother’s brother after the war. He was in the KNIL and became a POW after Java fell to the Japanese in March 1942. He was one of the survivors of the infamous “Death Railway” in Burma. They met after the war while he was recovering in a hospital where she was a nurse. After Indonesia gained independence, they moved to Dutch New Guinea, raised a family and in 1962 they moved to the Netherlands. My uncle has since passed away, but his widow is still living and currently resides in Amsterdam.

#73

Hello,

Thanks for the interesting posts. The journalist who researched and wrote about Klinkhammer was, I believe, Michiel Hegener. Hope I spelled his name right. I contacted Hegener about the Kendari area, but did not receive much of a response, although he did email back.
Some of the KNIL who escaped Kendari wound up at Palopo; others were captured & executed or killed in firefights. One group managed to get to Timor, I believe.
There were definitely Japanese killings at Menado and Kendari when these towns fell.
For these murders several high-ranking Japanese naval officers were later held responsible and executed by the Dutch, including RADM Mori Kunizo and the commander of the Special Naval Landing Force at Menado in Jan 1942, Horiuchi. But specific details of these trials–which I would like to find–have eluded me so far.

#74

New Hollandia eh,.

for some reasons, a lot of locals from my region,… were inter married with Dutch,… i have cousins of my own,… in osterwijk,… i visited her in 1998 . Some said,… my mother got Dutch Bloodline as well, as she posses a light brown eyes, fair skin and brownish hair. And her father name is Karel.

#75

You’re welcome and thanks for the information KMDjr,

Here is more on the killings in Celebes in 1942 as well as some related material.

Massacres of POWs, Dutch East Indies, 1941-1942
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/massacres.html

For Celebes:

Menado, Celebes Island, January 1942

Immediately following the Dutch surrender, the surviving KNIL troops and their commanders were put on trial by the Japanese who were enraged at the heavy losses they had suffered. As a result of this trial the D’ Company Commander, KNIL Reserve 1st Lieutenant J. Wielinga and one of his platoon commander Sergeant-Major H.J. Robbemond, Foerier B. Visscher and nine native soldiers were bayonetted or beheaded.

Makassar, Celebes Island, January 1942

On February 9, Japanese troops landed about 8000 men south of Makassar. A strong detachment immediately advanced towards Makassar. The guards of a bridge (numbers not given) south of Makassar were captured along with the bridge, but a KNIL company of native soldiers inflicted casualties upon the Japanese. In retaliation, the Japanese tied the men of the bridge detachment together three by three with their legbands, and threw them in the water. Probably this happened still on February 9th.

George Duncan’s Massacres and Atrocities of World War II - within the Pacific Region.
http://members.iinet.net.au/~gduncan/massacres_pacific.html

Center for Research Allied POWS Under the Japanese
http://www.mansell.com/pow-index.html

New Hollandia eh,.

for some reasons, a lot of locals from my region,… were inter married with Dutch,… i have cousins of my own,… in osterwijk,… i visited her in 1998 . Some said,… my mother got Dutch Bloodline as well, as she posses a light brown eyes, fair skin and brownish hair. And her father name is Karel.[/QUOTE]

Hi gumalangi,

Yes, I believe it was Hollandia (now Kota Jayapura) in what was then Dutch New Guinea.

Well, my aunt from Menado, Celebes was half Dutch and half Indonesian. Same with my mother and her brothers and sisters. My mother’s father was Dutch and her mother was Indonesian from Java. Grandfather was an Onderluitenant in the KNIL and two of his oldest sons also served in the KNIL. My mother was 9 years old when the Japanese invaded Java in March 1942. My grandfather died at the Tjimahi POW camp on 24 Jan 1945 and is buried in the cemetery there (central Java). The two oldest sons survived their WWII captivity.

Most of my mother’s family moved to the Netherlands in 1949-50. Later, my mother left Holland and immigrated to the United States in 1957 during President Eisenhower’s administration. She met my American father in Elkhart, Indiana and they married in 1958.

Many from the former Dutch East Indies have since settled here in the United States.

I think that I have been through Oosterwijk where your cousins live during my visits to the Netherlands. It is very possible that your mother has some Dutch in her. The Dutch presence in Indonesia (formerly the Dutch East Indies) lasted roughly 300 years. Also, there were Dutch that remained in Indonesia after it gained independence in 1949.

Oosterwijk (South Holland)
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=nl&u=http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oosterwijk&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=3&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3D%2B%22Oosterwijk%22%2Bwikipedia%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG%26as_qdr%3Dall

Interesting chatting with you. :slight_smile:

Cheers.

#76

Hi George,…

With regards to the fall of Menado, heard stories from my some people there,…
In Bitung they are few small islands,. infact Airmididi is a place near to bitung,. one of the landing spot of the invading Japanese Navy,.

It was told that there was a small Dutch Gun Boat was harrassing the landing and did some cat and mouse attack of the incoming Japanese fleet. The boat always able to hide on the islands and the IJN vessels had some difficulties capturing this boat.

Does this story true?

Much of thanks

#77

Hi gumalangi,

I am not sure about the story, but will check into it. I will post what I find.

Cheers

#78

KMDjr

Don’t know if this helps.

Enraged by the heavy losses, the Japanese executed a large number of KNIL POW’s. Shortly after the capture of Langoan airfield the D’ Company Commander 1st Lieutenant J. Wielinga, Sergeant-Major Robbemond, foerier B. Visscher and nine native soldiers were bayonetted or beheaded. Two more native soldiers died in captivity after they were tortured.

Knowing that the battle was lost, van den Berg ordered his remaining troops to retreat inland and start a guerrilla.

The Guerilla War, February 1942

On several places the remaining KNIL forces tried to start a guerrilla against the Japanese invaders. Captain Kroon assembled what was left of the Menado Compagnie (about 50 men) and retreated towards Kembes, hoping to start an active guerrilla from this place. Due to regular desertions by his native soldiers he reached Kembes with only nine men left. Here the group was taken prisoner by the Japanese. All European members, except Kroon himself, were executed at Langoan on January 26th. (Sergeant-Major J.H. Kersten, Sergeant-Major G. Bottinga, Sergeant J.W. Meijer, Sergeant G.H.J. Wissink, Private G.H. Couzijn and Private H.J.A. Rolff).

Sergeant Maliëzer from E-Company did not want to surrender and started a guerrilla with fifteen of his men. On February 8th they attacked a Japanese unit at Kanejan. The fighting lasted the whole day and the Japanese counter-attack failed. Outraged they burned the nearby Kampong and executed five civilians (including two women). On February 12th they came back with a larger force and this time captured Maliëzers group. Maliëzer too was executed at Langoan with twelve of his men. Also executed on this day was another woman, Mrs. Hofman, who took part in the guerrilla because the Japanese had executed her husband, a former knight of the Militaire Willemsorde.

Captain van den Berg’s and his group were taken prisoner on February 20th. His group, made up out of pensioners, attacked the Japanese units on several occasions and inflicted heavy casualties. Out of respect for the high average age and fighting spirit, the Japanese commander spared their lives.
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/menado.html

Perhaps if you contact the main site at http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies they would be able to help you as they’re very well informed on the NEI.

I’d expect that any trial of the Japanese you’ve mentioned would be at best C Class war criminals, possibly tried under Dutch jurisdiction after the war so they’d probably be in Dutch records somewhere rather than the International Military Tribunal for the Far East which tried the A and B Classes. Alternatively they could be in the C class criminals tried at Yokohama 1946-48 but I can’t see their names in this unofficial list http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~warcrime/Japan/Yokohama/Reviews/PT-yokohama-index.htm#K. There’s an official index somewhere on the internet, but I can’t find it. In searching the names, remember that in English the order of the surname and given name may not reflect Japanese usage, so that Toyoaki Horiuchi (I don’t know anything about him) might be listed under T rather than H.

#79

KMDjr

Ooops.

I think I might have covered stuff George Eller had already pointed to.

Sorry. To both KMDjr and George.

This is what happens when one posts to a post rather than reading a thread first.

#80

Hello Rising Sun,

Thanks for this info. I have already researched the IMTFE trials and these Japanese officers were not tried there AFAIK. There is good material re NEI warcrimes in the IMTFE documents–as held, for example, by Canterbury Univ. in Christchurch, NZ–but they aren’t what I’m looking for now…

I believe the records are Dutch, and not readily accessible. It appears that the Japanese were charged and executed very quickly. (In Japan CAPT Horiuchi, Toyoaki is looked upon as a tragic hero.) And I am very familiar with the NEI websites, too. They do not have what I’m looking for, so when I found this site I thought I would ask. It’s possible some useful materials may also be held in Australian archives, as there were warcrimes committed against Australians & Dutch POWs together–although these mainly occurred on the Burma-Siam “Death Railway” I think. But I believe they were imprisoned and mistreated at Ambon as well, among other places. Those warcrimes I am also familiar with…

thanks for your help anyway