Very Rare Deactivated Smith & Wesson .38 M&P Revolver issued to the K.N.I.L - Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger

This is a US manufactured Smith & Wesson .38 M&P service revolver that was issued to the K.N.I.L. - Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger. The K.N.I.L. was a military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies. They were formed in 1814, as the Dutch expanded their colonial rule in the East Indies. During WWII the K.N.I.L. had a fighting force of around 85,000 men who fought against the Japanese, but were ultimately overwhelmed by Japanese numbers. Many of the captured soldiers ended up in Japanese POW camps. Small numbers of soldiers that evaded capture mounted guerrilla campaigns against the Japanese until the end of the war. Re-grouped K.N.I.L forces also fought alongside Australian troops in the East Timor guerilla campaign of 1942. The K.N.I.L. regular troops consisted of about 1,000 officers and 34,000 enlisted soldiers until disbandment of the force in 1950. This revolver would have been issued to one of these officers as his sidearm which makes this a very rare find. Remarkably it has remained in tact and still has matching numbers. Deactivated with clear chambers and a working action.