Dutch colonial occupation forces in Indonesia

by numquamsolus

What was the maximum number of Dutch troops simultaneously present in Indonesia during its colonial occupation?

edXcitizen87539319

I'll just describe how things evolved over time:

After the Napoleonic Wars the Netherlands sent about 11.000 troops to Indonesia to restore Dutch control. This was ramped up to about 30.000 in the 1820s to suppress a rebellion on Java.

In 1830 the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (Koninklijk Nederlandsch-Indisch Leger or KNIL) was formed, it had a strength of 30.000 to 40.000 for most of its existence. About half of the men in the KNIL were from the Netherlands, with the other half consisting of local recruits. In the run up to the Second World War the KNIL strength was ramped up to 80.000 (in 1940).

After the Second World War the Netherlands wanted to regain control of Indonesia, but Indonesia had declared independence. During this Indonesian War of Independence the Dutch strength peaked at over 200.000 men: some 65.000 KNIL and 140.000 to 170.000 Dutch conscripts.


All numbers from:

S.N. Mengelberg, M.A.G. de Jong, A. de Munnik (ed.), Inleiding Krijgswetenschappen: Nederlandse Defensie Academie (Nijmegen 2010)