One cannot say illegal.

It was about the weapons of the so-called "1° Catégorie". Illegal and banned weapons were something else, that was weapons of the "2° Catégorie".

They were weapons and, above all, cartridges that could only be own and used with the permission of the authorities. Obtaining a permit was subject to various conditions.

It wasn't just about weapons of the WWII, but in the first law of 1939 all handguns and rifles that were used in various armed forces worldwide from around 1870, but also partly before.

The law was subsequently corrected several times but was only abolished in 2013 and replaced by the European Union firearms laws.