Who invented the Molotov cocktail?

The Molotov Cocktail is almost 80 years old, and many associate its name with the name of Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov, People’s Commissar of Foreign Affairs of the USSR. However, he has not the slightest connection with this “devilish invention”.

Or, let’s say, a direct relationship, only a very indirect one. This cocktail appeared during the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939-1940. The Finns had some difficulties with ammunition, and someone came up with the idea of ​​​​filling bottles with a hellish incendiary mixture. But where did the name come from?

The invented shell was indeed then associated with the name of the politician, but there was a small nuance – at first the name sounded like this: “a cocktail for Molotov.” Over time, the name was simplified by omitting the word “for” and the version used today remained. And so it turned out that the cocktail was allegedly invented by Molotov, explains publication “History of the Russian Federation”.

In the Red Army, the invention took root and was widely used in the first days of the Great Patriotic War. On July 7, 1941, the State Defense Committee adopted a resolution “On anti-tank incendiary grenades (bottles),” which detailed how to produce and supply troops with incendiary grenades. And on August 2, 1941, Stalin approved “instructions for the use of incendiary bottles.”

The “Molotov cocktail” continues to live today – Molotov cocktails are used by radicals at rallies or marches, when setting fire to cars or premises. You can meet it all over the world – bottles are thrown by demonstrators at the police, used by criminals and even simple hooligans. These people, as usual, know nothing about the policies of the Soviet People’s Commissar, but millions of people still remember his name from the cocktail.

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