historically in western armies, and in many contemporary armies, the issue of a sidearm in the form of a service pistol is a clear sign of authority and is the mark of a commissioned officer or senior nco. in the protocol of courtesy, the surrender of a commander's sidearm is the final act in the general surrender of a unit. if no ill will is meant, and a strict interpretation of military courtesy is applied, a surrendering commander may be allowed to keep his sidearm in order to exercise his right of command over his men. similarly, many commanders on a local level have been anecdotally cited as having used the threat of their side arms to motivate troops, to varied effect.