Molotov cocktail

File:Vyacheslav Molotov Anefo2.jpg

The name "Molotov cocktail" ({{langx|fi|Molotovin cocktail}}) was coined by the Finns during the Winter War in 1939.{{cite web |title='Molotov-cocktail' name usage in Swedish newspapers: 1940 |url=https://tidningar.kb.se/?q=Molotov%20cocktail&sort=&from=1940-01-01&to=1940-12-31 |website=tidningar.kb.se |publisher=Kungliga biblioteket (KB) |access-date=20 April 2022}}{{cite web |title='Molotovcocktail' name usage in Swedish newspapers: 1940 |url=https://tidningar.kb.se/?q=Molotovcocktail&sort=&from=1940-01-01&to=1940-12-31 |website=tidningar.kb.se |publisher=Kungliga biblioteket (KB) |access-date=20 April 2022}} The name was a pejorative reference to Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov, who was one of the architects of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact on the eve of World War II.

The name's origin came from the propaganda Molotov produced during the Winter War, mainly his declaration on Soviet state radio that incendiary bombing missions over Finland were actually "airborne humanitarian food deliveries" for their "starving" neighbours.{{Cite book|last=Casselman, Bill|url=|title=Word stash|year=2017|publisher=Trafford|isbn=978-1-4907-8494-6|oclc=1007046570}}{{cite web |title=Suomessa on yhä kolme aitoa Molotovin cocktailia |url=https://www.is.fi/kotimaa/art-2000001159984.html |website=is.fi |date=16 April 2016 |publisher=Ilta-Sanomat |access-date=2022-04-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324192849/https://www.is.fi/kotimaa/art-2000001159984.html|archive-date= 24 March 2023 }}{{Better source needed|date=March 2024}} As a result, the Finns sarcastically dubbed the Soviet incendiary cluster bombs "Molotov bread baskets" ({{langx|fi|Molotovin leipäkori}}) in reference to Molotov's propaganda broadcasts.{{cite journal |last=Langdon-Davies |first=John |date=June 1940 |title=The Lessons of Finland |journal=Picture Post |author-link=John Langdon-Davies }} When the hand-held bottle firebomb was developed to attack and destroy Soviet tanks, the Finns called it the "Molotov cocktail", as "a drink to go with his food parcels".The Second Book of General Ignorance, Faber and Faber, 2011, p. 76, {{ISBN|978-0-571-26965-5}}{{Cite web |last=Mason |first=Emma |date=March 15, 2022 |title=What is a Molotov cocktail? |url=https://www.historyextra.com/period/modern/molotov-cocktail-history/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=History Extra |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230306065236/https://www.historyextra.com/period/modern/molotov-cocktail-history/|archive-date=March 6, 2023}}

Despite the now infamous name, the formal Finnish military term for the weapon type was, and continues to be, "burn-bottle" ({{langx|fi|polttopullo}}, Fenno-Swedish: brännflaska).

The weapon most often known as the Molotov cocktail goes under a great variety of other names around the globe. Some are more formal than others but the weapon is often given a descriptive name in the respective language.

{{div col}}

• Bottle bomb
• Bottle grenade
• Burn bottle
• Burning bottle
• Fire bomb (not to be confused with other incendiary devices also known as firebombs)
• Fire bottle
• Flame bomb
• Flame bottle
• Gasoline bomb or Gas bomb – due to gasoline being a common filler (latter not to be confused with tear gas)
• Incendiary bottle
• Molly – abbreviation of Molotov cocktail (commonly used in video games){{cite web |title=Vad betyder CS:GO-slang? Vi förklarar termerna inom CS:GO |url=https://blog.betway.se/esport/csgo/vad-betyder-csgo-slang-vi-foerklarar-termerna-inom-csgo/ |website=blog.betway.se |access-date=2022-05-09 |archive-date=1 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601053124/https://blog.betway.se/esport/csgo/vad-betyder-csgo-slang-vi-foerklarar-termerna-inom-csgo/ }}
• Molotov – abbreviation of Molotov cocktail
• Petrol bomb – due to petrol being a common filler, used often in Northern Ireland{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}
• Poor man's grenade – due to its improvised nature {{cite journal |last1=Kolaitis |first1=D |title=An experimental investigation of improvised incendiary devices used in urban riots: The "Molotov cocktail" |journal=Proceedings of the 2nd IAFSS European Symposium of Fire Safety Science |date=2015 |pages=16–18 |url=https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/42796894/An_experimental_investigation_of_improvi20160218-2734-1u1no36-libre.pdf?1455794106=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DAn_experimental_investigation_of_improvi.pdf&Expires=1740775408&Signature=CLfgO-aojffqeo7fgt3qSkGjqicd3-JXBTKt5e3wMpWYMy4GyeK0aFOVOlm04sQfZQM0rMn1UWpx2zyUnUd5rHMrVySp72x6mvRg086z8bM1yov1U~UbSq6MGEc1z96CUHSjj9G-4F9mWjkINI91fQljMkTnZuwUoLaohbWcmS0LMBtBgpbwP-R59iukbi2ue1WjsxcEpXplkjPdSwL5jHR0hgFaNHAWctUtsxKITqRScEdJS3FrTdBJkjOdys6FZGBOgx9BcEluA77eHUyYF9DSV4yGkHzjKSiNNvC1xB2Vs-uD44t85WUgT0MD00IQuOeFfAeE~Ht7SGcuSvcBIw__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA}}{{citation needed|date=March 2024}}
• {{langx|es-ES|ponche}} ("punch"), {{lang|es-ES|poncho}} ("poncho"){{cite news |last1=Otálora |first1=Óscar B de |title=El argot de la Ertzaintza: de los 'ciervos' a los 'motanos' |url=https://www.diariovasco.com/politica/201605/16/argot-ertzaintza-ciervos-motanos-20160516132508.html |access-date=17 January 2025 |work=El Diario Vasco |date=16 May 2016 |language=es-ES |quote='Ponche' o 'poncho', es el término que se emplea para referirse a los 'cócteles molotov'.}}

{{div col end}}

• {{flag|Finland}} – {{langx|fi|polttopullo}}, ('burn-bottle') – Fenno-Swedish: {{lang|fi|brännflaska}} ('burn-bottle')
• {{flag|Nazi Germany}} – {{langx|de|Brandflasche}} ('fire bottle') – {{lang|de|Brandhandgranate}} ('fire hand grenade'){{cite web |title=Handgranaten |url=https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Waffen/handgranaten-R.htm |access-date=2022-05-10 |language=de|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927215816/https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Waffen/handgranaten-R.htm|archive-date=September 27, 2022 }}
• {{flag|USSR}} – {{langx|ru|зажига́тельная буты́лка|zazhigátelnaya butýlka|translation=incendiary bottle}} – {{langx|ru|буты́лка с горю́чей жи́дкостью|butýlka s goryúchey zhídkostyu|translation=bottle with combustible liquid}}{{cite book |last1=Bohm |first1=Victor |title=Rysk-svensk militärordbok |date=1965 |publisher=Försvarsstabens utrikesavdelning |location=Uppsala, Sweden |page=30 |url=https://runeberg.org/rusv1960/0034.html |access-date=2022-05-10 |language=sv }}
• {{flag|Sweden}} – {{langx|sv|brännflaska}} ('burn-bottle')
• {{flag|US}} – frangible grenade{{cite web |title=Frangible grenade |url=https://www.lexpev.nl/grenades/middleeastasia/japan/frangiblegrenade.html |website=lexpev.nl |access-date=2022-04-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927215817/https://www.lexpev.nl/grenades/middleeastasia/japan/frangiblegrenade.html|archive-date=September 27, 2022 |ref="Japanese Infantry Weapons" cincpac cincpoa Bulletin 55-45, 15 March 1945}} – incendiary frangible grenade – incendiary bottle grenade{{cite book |title=TM 9-1985-6 Italian and French Explosive Ordnance |date=1953 |publisher=United States. Department of the Army |page=162 |url=https://archive.org/details/TM9-1985-6/page/n165/mode/2up?q=bottle |access-date=2022-05-10 |language=en |format=Technical manual }}

File:Lighter for Swedish Molotov cocktail.jpg

A Molotov cocktail is a glass bottle containing a flammable substance such as petrol (gasoline), alcohol or a napalm-like mixture and a source of ignition, such as a burning cloth wick, held in place by the bottle's stopper. The wick is usually soaked in alcohol or kerosene rather than petrol. For winter warfare, a method of ignition has been to attach storm matches to the side of the bottle, as these are less likely to be put out by wind.{{sfn|Trotter|2003|p=73}}{{cite book |title=Amregister, Ammunitionsregister för armén |publisher=Ammunitionsavdelningen vid tygdepartementets 1. materialbyrå |location=Stockholm, Sweden |edition=1942 |language=sv |chapter=VII: Rök, brand.}}{{cite book |title=Amregister, Ammunitionsregister för armén |publisher=Ammunitionsavdelningen vid tygdepartementets 1. materialbyrå |location=Stockholm, Sweden |edition=1942, edit 1944 |language=sv |chapter=VII: Rök, brand.}} Some examples are fitted with ballast for improved throwing accuracy (such as filling {{frac|1|3}} of the bottle with sand).{{cite web |title=WW2 Japanese AT Weapons, Kaenbin |url=https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/kaenbin/ |website=tanks-encyclopedia.com |date=28 June 2021 |publisher=Tank Encyclopedia |access-date=2022-05-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207193430/https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/kaenbin/|archive-date= December 7, 2022 }}

In action, the wick/match is lit and the bottle hurled at a target such as a vehicle or fortification. When the bottle smashes on impact, the ensuing cloud of fuel droplets and vapour is ignited by the attached wick, causing an immediate fireball followed by spreading flames as the remainder of the fuel is consumed.

Other flammable liquids, such as diesel fuel, methanol, turpentine, jet fuel, acetone, and isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol), have been used in place of, or combined with, petrol. Thickening agents, such as solvents, extruded polystyrene (XPS) foam (known colloquially as styrofoam),{{cite web | url=https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-molotov-cocktail-russia/31725286.html | title=Making Molotov Cocktails, Ukrainian Civilians Prepare to Defend Homes| date=26 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310205120/https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-molotov-cocktail-russia/31725286.html|archive-date= March 10, 2022}} baking soda, petroleum jelly, tar, strips of tyre tubing, nitrocellulose, motor oil, rubber cement, detergent and dish soap, have been added to promote adhesion of the burning liquid and to create clouds of thick, choking smoke.{{cite book |last1=Rottman |first1=Gordon L. |last2=Dennis |first2=Peter |title=World War II Allied Sabotage Devices and Booby Traps |url=https://archive.org/details/worldwariiallied00rott |url-access=limited |location=Botley, Oxford |year=2010 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84908-175-7 |page=[https://archive.org/details/worldwariiallied00rott/page/n18 18] }} There also exist variations on the Molotov cocktail-concept where the bottle is filled with a smoke generating mixture such as sulfur trioxide dissolved in chlorosulfonic acid.{{cite book |title=AMORDLISTA, Preliminär ammunitionsordlista |publisher=Försvarets materielverk (FMV), huvudavdelningen för armémateriel |year=1979 |location=Sweden |page=61}} These so-called "smoke bottles" do not need a source for ignition, as the mixture reacts with the air once the bottle is smashed.

{{See also|Battle of Seseña}}

File:Spanish civil war molotov cocktail.png

Improvised incendiary devices of this type were used in warfare for the first time in the Spanish Civil War between July 1936 and April 1939,{{cite book |last=Thomas |first=Hugh |author-link=Hugh Thomas (writer) |year=1994 |orig-date=1986 |title=The Spanish Civil War |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |page=468 |isbn=0-671-75876-4 |oclc=29184912}} before they became known as "Molotov cocktails". In 1936, General Francisco Franco ordered Spanish Nationalist forces to use the weapon against Soviet T-26 tanks supporting the Spanish Republicans in a failed assault on the Nationalist stronghold of Seseña, near Toledo, {{convert|40|km|mi|abbr=on}} south of Madrid.{{cite book |last=Trotter |first=William |author-link=William R. Trotter |title=Frozen Hell: The Russo-Finnish Winter War of 1939–40 |publisher=Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, Marshall Kregel |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-945575-22-1 |chapter=History of the Molotov Cocktail |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060530031219/http://www.kevos4.com/Molotov_Cocktail.htm |archive-date=30 May 2006 |chapter-url=http://www.kevos4.com/Molotov_Cocktail.htm}} After that, both sides used simple petrol bombs set fire with toxic gas or petrol-soaked blankets with some success. Tom Wintringham, a veteran of the International Brigades, later publicised his recommended method of using them:

{{Blockquote|We made use of "petrol bombs" roughly as follows: take a 2lb glass jam jar. Fill with petrol. Take a heavy curtain, half a blanket, or some other heavy material. Wrap this over the mouth of the jar, tie it round the neck with string, leave the ends of the material hanging free. When you want to use it have somebody standing by with a light [i.e., a source of ignition]. Put a corner of the material down in front of you, turn the bottle over so that petrol soaks out round the mouth of the bottle and drips on to this corner of the material. Turn the bottle right way up again, hold it in your right hand, most of the blanket bunched beneath the bottle, with your left hand take the blanket near the corner that is wetted with petrol. Wait for your tank. When near enough, your pal [or comrade-in-arms] lights the petrol soaked corner of the blanket. Throw the bottle and blanket as soon as this corner is flaring. (You cannot throw it far.) See that it drops in front of the tank. The blanket should catch in the tracks or in a cog-wheel, or wind itself round an axle. The bottle will smash, but the petrol should soak the blanket well enough to make a really healthy fire which will burn the rubber wheels on which the tank track runs, set fire to the carburettor or frizzle the crew. Do not play with these things. They are highly dangerous.{{cite journal |title=Against Invasion – the lessons of Spain |journal=Picture Post |date=15 June 1940 |pages=9–24}}}}

The Battle of Khalkhin Gol, a border conflict of 1939 ostensibly between Mongolia and Manchukuo, saw heavy fighting between Japanese and Soviet forces. Short of anti-tank equipment, Japanese infantry attacked Soviet tanks with gasoline-filled bottles. Japanese infantrymen claimed that several hundred Soviet tanks had been destroyed this way, though Soviet loss records do not support this assessment.Coox, Alvin. Nomonhan: Japan Against Russia, 1939, 1990

File:Kasapano.jpg. Tanks were destroyed with satchel charges and Molotov cocktails. The bottle has storm matches instead of a rag for a fuse.]]

On 30 November 1939, the Soviet Union attacked Finland, starting what came to be known as the Winter War. The Finnish perfected the design and tactical use of the petrol bomb. The fuel for the Molotov cocktail was refined to a slightly sticky mixture of alcohol, kerosene, tar, and potassium chlorate. Further refinements included the attachment of wind-proof matches or a phial of chemicals that would ignite on breakage, thereby removing the need to pre-ignite the bottle, and leaving the bottle about one-third empty was found to make breaking more likely.{{sfn|Trotter|2003|p=73}}

A British War Office report dated June 1940 noted that:

{{blockquote|The Finns' policy was to allow the Russian tanks to penetrate their defences, even inducing them to do so by 'canalising' them through gaps and concentrating their small arms fire on the infantry following them. The tanks that penetrated were taken on by gun fire in the open and by small parties of men armed with explosive charges and petrol bombs in the forests and villages... The essence of the policy was the separation of the AFVs from the infantry, as once on their own the tank has many blind spots and once brought to a stop can be disposed of at leisure.Anti-tank measures; adoption and production of sticky bomb – [http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/ExternalRequest.asp?RequestReference=WO185/1 WO 185/1], The National Archives}}

Molotov cocktails were eventually mass-produced by the Alko corporation at its Rajamäki distillery, bundled with matches to light them.{{cite web |last=Sirén |first=Ilkka |title=Finland's National Booze Is Bottled in a Former Molotov Cocktail Factory |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/finlands-national-booze-is-bottled-in-a-former-molotov-cocktail-factory/ |access-date=10 April 2022 |website=vice.com |date=7 December 2017 |publisher=Vice |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20230429070456/https://www.vice.com/en/article/9kdbyv/finlands-national-booze-is-bottled-in-a-former-molotov-cocktail-factory |archive-date=29 April 2023 |url-status=live}} A {{convert|500|ml|abbr=on|USqt}} bottle was filled with a mixture of petrol and paraffin, plus a small amount of tar. The basic bottle had two long pyrotechnic storm matches attached to either side. Before use, one or both of the matches were lit; when the bottle broke on impact, the mixture ignited. The storm matches were found to be safer to use than a burning rag on the mouth of the bottle. There was also an "A bottle". This replaced the matches with a small ampoule inside the bottle; it ignited when the bottle broke. By spring 1940 they had produced 542,104 bottles.{{cite journal |last=Heinonen |first=Keijo |date=2005 |title=Who Invented the Molotov Cocktail? |url=https://www.sshs.fi/pdf/Sotahistoriallinen%20aikakauskirja%2024%202005.pdf |journal=Sotahistoriallinen Aikakauskirja |issue=24 |page=151 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130033812/https://www.sshs.fi/pdf/Sotahistoriallinen%20aikakauskirja%2024%202005.pdf |archive-date=30 November 2022}}

File:A squad of Home Guard soldiers training to defend a street with 'Molotov cocktail' petrol bombs, March 1941. H8128.jpg

Early in 1940, with the prospect of immediate invasion, the possibilities of the petrol bomb gripped the imagination of the British public. For laypersons, the petrol bomb had the benefit of using entirely familiar and available materials,{{sfn|Wintringham|1940| p=60}} and they were quickly improvised in large numbers, with the intention of using them against enemy tanks.{{cite video |date=1 August 1940 |title=Cocktails A La Molotov – News item about British Home Guard training |url=https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/47736/|medium=Newsreel |publisher=British Pathé |access-date=2010-09-09}}

The Finns had found that they were effective when used in the right way and in sufficient numbers. Although the experience of the Spanish Civil War received more publicity, the more sophisticated petroleum warfare tactics of the Finns were not lost on British commanders. In his 5 June address to LDV leaders, General Ironside said:

{{blockquote|I want to develop this thing they developed in Finland, called the "Molotov cocktail", a bottle filled with resin, petrol and tar which if thrown on top of a tank will ignite, and if you throw half a dozen or more on it you have them cooked. It is quite an effective thing. If you can use your ingenuity, I give you a picture of a [road] block with two houses close to the block, overlooking it. There are many villages like that. Out of the top windows is the place to drop these things on the tank as it passes the block. It may only stop it for two minutes there, but it will be quite effective.{{sfn|Graves|1943|p=71}}}}

Wintringham advised that a tank that was isolated from supporting infantry was potentially vulnerable to men who had the required determination and cunning to get close. Rifles or even a shotgun would be sufficient to persuade the crew to close all the hatches, and then the view from the tank is very limited; a turret-mounted machine gun has a very slow traverse and cannot hope to fend off attackers coming from all directions. Once sufficiently close, it is possible to hide where the tank's gunner cannot see: "The most dangerous distance away from a tank is 200 yards; the safest distance is six inches."Wintringham, Tom. Against Invasion – the lessons of Spain. Picture Post 15 June 1940 p. 14. Petrol bombs will soon produce a pall of blinding smoke, and a well-placed explosive package or even a stout iron bar in the tracks can immobilise the vehicle, leaving it at the mercy of further petrol bombs – which will suffocate the engine and possibly the crew – or an explosive charge or anti-tank mine.

By August 1940, the War Office produced training instructions for the creation and use of Molotov cocktails. The instructions suggested scoring the bottles vertically with a diamond to ensure breakage and providing fuel-soaked rag, windproof matches or a length of cinema film (then composed of highly flammable nitrocellulose) as a source of ignition.War Office. Military Training Manual No 42, Appendix A: The Anti-Tank Petrol Bomb "Molotov Cocktail." 29 August 1940.

On 29 July 1940, manufacturers Albright & Wilson of Oldbury demonstrated to the RAF how their white phosphorus could be used to ignite incendiary bombs. The demonstration involved throwing glass bottles containing a mixture of petrol and phosphorus at pieces of wood and into a hut. On breaking, the phosphorus was exposed to the air and spontaneously ignited; the petrol also burned, resulting in a fierce fire. Because of safety concerns, the RAF was not interested in white phosphorus as a source of ignition, but the idea of a self-igniting petrol bomb took hold. Initially known as an A.W. bomb, it was officially named the No. 76 Grenade, but more commonly known as the SIP (Self-Igniting Phosphorus) grenade. The perfected list of ingredients was white phosphorus, benzene, water and a two-inch strip of raw rubber; all in a half-pint bottle sealed with a crown stopper.War Office. Military Training Manual No 42, Appendix B: The Self-Igniting Phosphorus Grenade, The AW Grenade. 29 August 1940, p. 25. Over time, the rubber would slowly dissolve, making the contents slightly sticky, and the mixture would separate into two layers – this was intentional, and the grenade should not be shaken to mix the layers, as this would only delay ignition.Handbook for the Projectors, 2½ inch, Marks I & II September 1941. p. 26. When thrown against a hard surface, the glass would shatter and the contents would instantly ignite, liberating choking fumes of phosphorus pentoxide and sulfur dioxide as well as producing a great deal of heat. Strict instructions were issued to store the grenades safely, preferably underwater and certainly never in a house. Mainly issued to the Home Guard as an anti-tank weapon, it was produced in vast numbers; by August 1941 well over 6,000,000 had been manufactured.Northover Projectors – [http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/ExternalRequest.asp?RequestReference=WO185/23 WO 185/23], The National Archives

There were many who were sceptical about the efficacy of Molotov cocktails and SIPs grenades against the more modern German tanks. Weapon designer Stuart Macrae witnessed a trial of the SIPs grenade at Farnborough: "There was some concern that, if the tank drivers could not pull up quickly enough and hop out, they were likely to be frizzled to death, but after looking at the bottles they said they would be happy to take a chance."{{sfn|Macrae|1971|p=120}} The drivers were proved right, trials on modern British tanks confirmed that Molotov and SIP grenades caused the occupants of the tanks "no inconvenience whatsoever."{{sfn|Macrae|1971|pp=84–85}}

Wintringham, though enthusiastic about improvised weapons, cautioned against a reliance on petrol bombs and repeatedly emphasised the importance of using explosive charges.Wintringham, Tom. Against Invasion – the lessons of Spain. Picture Post 15 June 1940 pp. 9–24.{{sfn|Wintringham|1940|p=59}}

The U.S. army designated Molotov cocktails as frangible grenades. They presented a notable amount of variations, from those that used thin fuel with varied ignition systems, to those that used obscurants and chemical weapons. Various frangible grenade designs were developed, with those investiged by the NDRC showing the highest technological level. These incendiary devices employed the most technologically advanced fillers in the conflict.

The M1 frangible grenade was the standard US device, but each division of the army could come up with its own. Two non-industrial models of these grenades were developed and manufactured in a certain quantity. In all, about five thousand were manufactured.Report of the New Weapons Board. pp. 135–136. 27 April 1944. The frangible grenades featured standardized chemical igniters, some were specific to each flammable filler.

Most of the frangible devices were made in an improvised way, with no standardization regarding the bottle and filling.OP 1664. Vol 2. pp. 308–310 The frangible grenades were eventually declared obsolete, due to the very limited destructive effect.TOP 2-2-617. 30 January 1975. p. 21.

1107 frangible, M1, NP type were supplied to the navy and its units for field use at Iwo Jima.Assistance Rendered to the Navy and Marines. Part 8 The United States Marine Corps developed a version during World War II that used a tube of nitric acid and a lump of metallic sodium to ignite a mixture of petrol and diesel fuel.{{cite book |author=O'Kane, Richard |title=Wahoo: The Patrols of America's Most Famous WWII Submarine |publisher=Presidio Press |year=1987 |isbn=0-89141-572-6 |page=184}}

The Polish Home Army developed a version{{cite web |last=Stolarski |first=Rafal E. |title=The Production of Arms and Explosive Materials by the Polish Home Army in the Years 1939–1945 |url=http://www.polishresistance-ak.org/25%20Article.htm |access-date=30 June 2007 |website=polishresistance-ak.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230319005130/http://www.polishresistance-ak.org/25%20Article.htm |archive-date=19 March 2023}} which ignited on impact without the need of a wick. Ignition was caused by a reaction between concentrated sulfuric acid mixed with the fuel and a mixture of potassium chlorate and sugar which was crystallized from solution onto a rag attached to the bottle.

During the Norwegian campaign in 1940 the Norwegian Army lacking suitable anti-tank weaponry had to rely on petrol bombs and other improvised weapons to fight German armored vehicles. Instructions from Norwegian High Command sent to army units in April 1940 encouraged soldiers to start ad-hoc production of "Hitler cocktails" (a different take on the Finnish nickname for the weapon) to combat tanks and armored cars.Aspheim, Odd and Hjeltnes, Guri. Tokt ved neste nymåne. p. 58. {{ISBN|82-02-12701-7}} During the campaign there were instances of petrol bombs being relatively effective against the lighter tanks employed in Norway by Germany, such as the Panzer I and Panzer II.

During before National resistance, the Vietminh made molotov cocktail{{Cite web |last=ONLINE |first=TUOI TRE |date=2010-12-22 |title=Nhớ những ngày xuân kháng chiến đầu tiên |url=https://cuoituan.tuoitre.vn/nho-nhung-ngay-xuan-khang-chien-dau-tien-416545.htm |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=TUOI TRE ONLINE |language=vi}} for fight against the French tank and an armored vehicle. And in the Vietnam War, during the struggle movement of Saigon students during the resistance war against America to save the country, a prominent event was the students occupying the Cambodian Embassy to protest against the Lon Nol government's murder of overseas Vietnamese.The defense was well-arranged with all the weapons available and those taken from the field police. They also made hundreds of petrol bombs from easily available materials such as foam and rubber crepe stuffed into coke bottles, sardine bottles filled with petrol..., a terrifying weapon for the field police.{{Cite web |title=Sự kiện chấn động Sài Gòn năm 1970 |url=https://thinhvuongvietnam.com/Content/su-kien-chan-dong-sai-gon-nam-1970-484921 |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=thinhvuongvietnam.com |language=vi}}

During the Troubles, both the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) and civilians used petrol bombs, although with different uses. Civilians tended to use petrol bombs and rocks against police officers in riots;{{cite web |author= |title=Extracts from a British government report about the political situation in Northern Ireland in July 1969 (CJ 3/52) |url=https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/cj3-51.jpg |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170426180024/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/cj3-51.jpg |archive-date=26 April 2017 |access-date=11 November 2023 |website=The National Archives |language=en-GB}} however, the PIRA tended to use them in attacks rather than in self-defence. Over time, as the PIRA became more co-ordinated, it shifted to using IEDs rather than petrol bombs.

{{Cite journal |last=Gill |first=Paul |year=2016 |title=Tactical Innovation and the Provisional Irish Republican Army |url=https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1521069/3/Gill_Resub_Tactical%20Innovation%20and%20the%20Provisional%20Irish%20Republican%20Army(1).pdf |journal=Studies in Conflict & Terrorism |publisher=Taylor & Francis |volume=40 |issue=7 |pages=573–585 |doi=10.1080/1057610X.2016.1237221 |via=UCL Discovery}}

File:Reporter’s Notebook - Thriving Kyiv Becomes Battle Zone, Almost Overnight 03 (cropped).jpg preparing Molotov cocktails for use during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]]

During the Second Battle of Fallujah in 2004, U.S. Marines employed Molotov cocktails made with "one part liquid laundry detergent, two parts gas [gasoline]" while clearing houses "when contact is made in a house and the enemy must be burned out". The tactic "was developed in response to the enemy's tactics" of guerrilla warfare and particularly martyrdom tactics which often resulted in U.S. Marine casualties. The cocktail was a less expedient alternative to white phosphorus mortar rounds or propane tanks detonated with C4 (nicknamed the "House Guest"), all of which proved effective at burning out engaged enemy combatants.{{cite web|date=2005-03-08|title=Showdown – The Battle of Fallujah – Part 15 – After Action Report |url=https://www.blackfive.net/main/2005/03/showdown_the_ba.html|website=BlackFive|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923214059/https://www.blackfive.net/main/2005/03/showdown_the_ba.html |archive-date=23 September 2022}}

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry told civilians to make Molotov cocktails, locally called "Bandera smoothies",{{cite web |last=Harding |first=Luke |title='I haven't told my granny': Ukraine's student molotov cocktail-makers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/28/i-havent-told-my-granny-ukraines-student-molotov-cocktail-makers |website=The Guardian |date=28 February 2022 |access-date=25 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324041847/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/28/i-havent-told-my-granny-ukraines-student-molotov-cocktail-makers |archive-date=24 March 2023}} to fight Russian troops.{{cite news |last=Tsvetkova |first=Maria |date=25 February 2022 |title=Kyiv residents told to make Molotov cocktails as they await Russian assault |publisher=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/kyiv-residents-clear-away-rubble-await-russian-assault-2022-02-25/ |access-date=26 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129201636/https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/kyiv-residents-clear-away-rubble-await-russian-assault-2022-02-25/ |archive-date=29 January 2023}} The defense ministry distributed a recipe for producing Molotov cocktails to civilians through Ukrainian television, which included the use of styrofoam as a thickening agent to aid in helping the burning liquid stick to vehicles or other targets.{{cite web |title=Ukraine invasion: Civilians help make Molotov cocktails to take on Russian forces |url=https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-invasion-civilians-help-make-molotov-cocktails-to-take-on-russian-forces-12552181 |access-date=27 February 2022 |publisher=Sky News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324091456/https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-invasion-civilians-help-make-molotov-cocktails-to-take-on-russian-forces-12552181|archive-date=24 March 2023}} The Pravda Brewery of Lviv, which converted from making beer to Molotov cocktails, said that its recipe was "3 cups polystyrene, 2 cups grated soap, 500 millilitres gasoline, 100 millilitres oil, 1 jumbo tampon fuse."{{cite web |last=Gray |first=Freddy |author-link=Freddy Gray |date=5 March 2022 |title=In Lviv, the mood is inspiring – and fanatical |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/in-lviv-the-mood-is-inspiring--and-fanatical |access-date=5 March 2022 |website=The Spectator |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221030101921/https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/in-lviv-the-mood-is-inspiring--and-fanatical |archive-date=30 October 2022}} The Russian media control organisation Roskomnadzor sued Twitter for not removing instructions for how to prepare and use molotov cocktails, so that Twitter had to pay a fine of 3 million roubles (US$41,000).[https://www.newsweek.com/twitter-latest-social-media-platform-russia-fines-over-illegal-content-1701812 "Twitter the Latest Social Media Platform Russia Fines Over Illegal Content"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402020536/https://www.newsweek.com/twitter-latest-social-media-platform-russia-fines-over-illegal-content-1701812 |date=2023-04-02}}, Newsweek, 28 April 2022

File:Molotov cocktails prepared in advance by protesters. Euromaidan Protests.jpg protests]]

Molotov cocktails were reportedly used in the United States for arson attacks on shops and other buildings during the 1992 Los Angeles riots.{{cite web |url=https://www.scpr.org/blogs/offramp/2012/04/26/5803/apparently-los-angeles-riots-were-good-thing/ |title=20 years later, scoring political points from the Riots? |first=Kevin |last=Ferguson |date=26 April 2012 |website=Southern California Public Radio |access-date=28 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601053131/https://archive.kpcc.org/blogs/offramp/2012/04/26/5803/apparently-los-angeles-riots-were-good-thing/ |archive-date=1 June 2022}}

Molotov cocktails were used by protesters and civilian militia in Ukraine during Euromaidan and the Revolution of Dignity. Protesters during the Ferguson riots also used Molotov cocktails.{{cite web |date=14 August 2014 |title=Battle of Ferguson, Mo., continues as crowds throw Molotov cocktails and police use tear gas, smoke bombs |url=http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2014/08/battle_of_ferguson_mo_continue.html |publisher=Associated Press |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003004030/https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/2014/08/battle_of_ferguson_mo_continue.html |archive-date=3 October 2022}}

In Bangladesh, during anti-government protests in 2013 and 2014, many buses and cars were targeted with petrol bombs. A number of people burned to death and many more were injured due to these attacks.{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2013/12/16/bangladesh-end-deadly-street-violence |title=Bangladesh: End Deadly Street Violence |date=16 December 2013 |publisher=Human Rights Watch |access-date=28 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929170717/https://www.hrw.org/news/2013/12/16/bangladesh-end-deadly-street-violence |archive-date=29 September 2022}}{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/report/2014/04/29/democracy-crossfire/opposition-violence-and-government-abuses-2014-pre-and-post |title=Democracy in the Crossfire – Opposition Violence and Government Abuses in the 2014 Pre- and Post- Election Period in Bangladesh |date=29 April 2014 |website=Human Rights Watch |access-date=28 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203103127/https://www.hrw.org/report/2014/04/29/democracy-crossfire/opposition-violence-and-government-abuses-2014-pre-and-post |archive-date=3 December 2022}}

During the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests, riots broke out and Molotov cocktails were used to attack the police and create roadblocks. They were also used to attack an MTR station, causing severe damage.{{cite web |date=12 October 2019 |title=Hong Kong protests: Molotov cocktails thrown in metro station |url=https://www.dw.com/en/hong-kong-protests-molotov-cocktails-thrown-in-metro-station/a-50806459 |access-date=13 October 2019 |website=DW.COM |publisher=Deutsche Welle |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930151429/https://www.dw.com/en/hong-kong-protests-molotov-cocktails-thrown-in-metro-station/a-50806459 |archive-date=30 September 2022}} A journalist was also struck by a Molotov cocktail during the protests.{{cite AV media |title=Journalist Hit by Petrol Bomb at Hong Kong Protest|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjpG-wehNOE |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/WjpG-wehNOE |archive-date=11 December 2021 |url-status=live |access-date=13 October 2019 |via=YouTube }}{{cbignore}}

Molotov cocktails were used by some during the riots following the 2020 George Floyd protests in the United States.{{cite web |title=Lawyers arrested for throwing Molotov cocktails during George Floyd protests could face life in prison |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/george-floyd-protests-molotov-cocktails-new-york-lawyers-a9564936.html |website=The Independent |date=13 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031070444/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/george-floyd-protests-molotov-cocktails-new-york-lawyers-a9564936.html |archive-date=31 October 2022}}

File:Puputovs.jpg]]

During the 2014–17 Venezuelan protests, protesters used Molotov cocktails similar to those used by demonstrators in other countries.{{cite web|title=Punished for Protesting|url=https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/venezuela0514_reportcover_web.pdf|publisher=Human Rights Watch|access-date=6 May 2014|archive-date=13 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140513223338/http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/venezuela0514_reportcover_web.pdf}} As the 2017 Venezuelan protests intensified, demonstrators began using "Puputovs" (a portmanteau of the words "poo-poo" and "Molotov"), with glass containers filled with excrement being thrown at authorities after the PSUV ruling-party official, Jacqueline Faría, mocked protesters who had to crawl through sewage in Caracas' Guaire River to avoid tear gas.{{cite news|date=9 May 2017|title=Venezuela: qué son las bombas "puputov" que desde las redes proponen utilizar contra la policía|language=Spanish|work=La Nación|url=http://www.lanacion.com.ar/2022124-venezuela-que-son-las-bombas-puputov-que-desde-las-redes-proponen-utilizar-contra-la-policia|access-date=21 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220321174157/https://www.lanacion.com.ar/el-mundo/venezuela-que-son-las-bombas-puputov-que-desde-las-redes-proponen-utilizar-contra-la-policia-nid2022124/|archive-date=March 21, 2022}}{{cite news|date=8 May 2017|title=Las #Puputov son TT… tal vez a Jacqueline Faría le parezca "sabroso"|language=Spanish|work=La Patilla|url=https://www.lapatilla.com/site/2017/05/08/las-puputov-son-tt-tal-vez-a-jacqueline-faria-le-parezca-sabroso/|access-date=9 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901224527/https://www.lapatilla.com/2017/05/08/las-puputov-son-tt-tal-vez-a-jacqueline-faria-le-parezca-sabroso/|archive-date=September 1, 2022}}

On 8 May, the hashtag #puputov became the top trending hashtag on Twitter in Venezuela, as reports of authorities vomiting after being drenched in excrement began to circulate.{{cite news|title=¡LO ÚLTIMO! Manifestantes lanzaron excremento a los PNB y GNB represores y #puputovs se vuelve tendencia|url=https://dolartoday.com/lo-ultimo-manifestantes-lanzaron-excremento-los-pnb-y-gnb-represores-y-puputovs-se-vuelve-tendencia/|access-date=9 May 2017|work=DolarToday|date=9 May 2017|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927215821/https://dolartoday.com/lo-ultimo-manifestantes-lanzaron-excremento-los-pnb-y-gnb-represores-y-puputovs-se-vuelve-tendencia/|archive-date=September 27, 2022}} A month later, on 4 June 2017, during protests against Donald Trump in Portland, Oregon, police claimed protesters began throwing balloons filled with "unknown, foul-smelling liquid" at officers.{{cite news|title=Portland police close Chapman Square after protesters throw bricks, other items at police|url=http://www.kgw.com/news/local/hundreds-of-pro-trump-protesters-counter-protesters-gather-in-downtown-portland/445721962|access-date=4 June 2017|work=KGW|date=4 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170809204813/http://www.kgw.com/news/local/hundreds-of-pro-trump-protesters-counter-protesters-gather-in-downtown-portland/445721962|archive-date=August 9, 2017}}

As incendiary devices, Molotov cocktails are illegal to manufacture or possess in many regions.

In Canada, Molotov cocktails are considered an "explosive substance" under the Criminal Code (Canada) and possession is illegal. Under section 82:

"Possession of explosive (1) Every person who, without lawful excuse, makes or has in their possession or under their care or control any explosive substance is guilty of (a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years; or (b) an offence punishable on summary conviction."{{cite web |title=Criminal Code of Canada |url=https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/c-46/page-8.html#h-116256 |access-date=19 March 2025}}

In the United Kingdom, molotov cocktails are considered illegal under the Explosive Substances Act 1883.

In the United States, Molotov cocktails are considered "destructive devices" under the National Firearms Act and are regulated by the ATF.{{cite web|title=National Firearms Act Handbook|url=http://www.atf.gov/files/publications/download/p/atf-p-5320-8/atf-p-5320-8.pdf|access-date=2014-02-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220324061739/https://www.atf.gov/firearms/docs/guide/atf-national-firearms-act-handbook-atf-p-53208/download|archive-date=March 24, 2022}} Wil Casey Floyd, from Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, was arrested after throwing Molotov cocktails at Seattle police officers during a protest in May 2016; he pleaded guilty for using the incendiary devices in February 2018.{{cite web |title=Former Seattle Resident Pleads Guilty to Federal Crime for Use of 'Molotov Cocktail' at May Day 2016 Protest |url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdwa/pr/former-seattle-resident-pleads-guilty-federal-crime-use-molotov-cocktail-may-day-2016 |website=U.S. Department of Justice |date=22 February 2018 |access-date=9 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206133656/https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdwa/pr/former-seattle-resident-pleads-guilty-federal-crime-use-molotov-cocktail-may-day-2016|archive-date= December 6, 2022}}

In Simpson County, Kentucky, 20-year-old Trey Alexander Gwathney-Law attempted to burn Franklin-Simpson County Middle School with five Molotov cocktails; he was found guilty of making and possessing illegal firearms and was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2018.{{cite web |title=Kentucky Man Who Made Molotov Cocktails Gets 20 Years |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/kentucky/articles/2018-03-08/kentucky-man-made-molotov-cocktails-gets-20-years-in-prison |website=U.S. News |access-date=8 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901224527/https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/kentucky/articles/2018-03-08/kentucky-man-made-molotov-cocktails-gets-20-years-in-prison|archive-date=September 1, 2022}}

File:MolotovOnPolice.jpg]]

Due to the Molotov's ease of production and use by civilian forces, the Molotov cocktail has become a symbol of civil uprising and revolution. The Molotov's extensive use by civilian, and partisan forces has also thereby led to the Molotov becoming a symbol representing civil unrest.{{cite journal |doi=10.1177/2378023118773614 |title=Sticks, Stones, and Molotov Cocktails: Unarmed Collective Violence and Democratization |year=2018 |last1=Kadivar |first1=Mohammad Ali |last2=Ketchley |first2=Neil |journal=Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World |volume=4 |s2cid=157184910 |doi-access=free}}{{cite magazine |last1=Garnett |first1=Joy |last2=Meiselas |first2=Susan |title=On the Rights of the Molotov Man: Appropriation and the art of context |url=https://zscalarts.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/on-the-rights-of-molotov-man-susan-joy.pdf |magazine=Harper's Magazine |date=February 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220828142232/https://zscalarts.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/on-the-rights-of-molotov-man-susan-joy.pdf|archive-date=28 August 2022}}{{cite book |last=Scalice |first=Joseph |title=A Planned and Coordinated Anarchy – The Barricades of 1971 and the "Diliman Commune" |url=https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/joseph-scalice-a-planned-and-coordinated-anarchy.pdf |year=2018 |pages=8, 9, 12, 13, 16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028174656/http://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/joseph-scalice-a-planned-and-coordinated-anarchy.pdf |archive-date=28 October 2020}}{{cite book |chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9781137530868_15 |doi=10.1057/9781137530868_15 |chapter=New Modes of Collective Actions: The Reemergence of Anarchism in Egypt |title=Contentious Politics in the Middle East |year=2015 |last=Galián |first=Laura |pages=351–371 |isbn=978-1-137-53720-1}}{{cite web |url=https://www.bib.irb.hr/564622?rad=564622 |title = Anarchism – Protests – Upbringing: Anarchistic implications in student protests and upbringing |website=Hrvatska znanstvena bibliografija |year=2011 |last=Miliša |first=Zlatko |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221211100448/https://www.bib.irb.hr/564622?rad=564622|archive-date=11 December 2022}} The contrast of a Molotov cocktail and an organized force has become a popular symbol in popular culture,{{cite book |url=https://www.manchesterhive.com/view/9781847799616/9781847799616.00026.xml |isbn=978-1-84779-961-6 |title=Punk zines: 'Symbols of defiance' from the print to the digital age |date=15 September 2016 |pages=287–303 |publisher=Manchester University Press}} and is often utilized as a weapon in various video games.

File:Molotov bread basket.jpg|Molotov bread basket

File:Talvisota Molotov Cocktail.PNG|A Finnish soldier with a Molotov cocktail

File:British Home Guard Improvised Weapons.JPG|British Home Guard improvised weapons in Imperial War Museum, London.

File:MWP Sidolowka satchel molotov.JPG|Improvised munitions from the Warsaw uprising, 1944

File:A protester holding Molotov Cocktail seen as the clashes develop in Kyiv, Ukraine. Events of February 18, 2014-2.jpg|Molotov cocktails used by Ukrainian protesters

File:Molotov Cocktails in East Jerusalem.jpg|Palestinian Molotov cocktails seized by the Israeli Police in East Jerusalem

• {{annotated link|Greek fire}}
• {{annotated link|Flamethrower}}
• {{annotated link|Improvised explosive device}}
• {{annotated link|Improvised firearm}}
• {{annotated link|Insurgency weapons and tactics}}
• {{annotated link|No. 73 grenade}}
• {{annotated link|TM 31-210 Improvised Munitions Handbook|TM 31-210 Improvised Munitions Handbook}}
• {{annotated link|Urban guerrilla warfare}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book|last=Graves|first=Charles|year=1943|title=The Home Guard of Britain|publisher=Hutchinson & Co}}
• {{cite book|first=Stuart|last=Macrae|author-link=Stuart Macrae (inventor)|title=Winston Churchill's Toyshop|publisher=Roundwood Press|year=1971|id=SBN 900093-22-6}}
• {{cite book|last=Trotter|first=William R.|author-link=William R. Trotter|title=The Winter War, The Russo-Finnish War of 1939–40|publisher=Aurum Press Limited|year=2003

|isbn=978-1-85410-932-3}}

• {{cite book|first=Tom|last=Wintringham|author-link=Tom Wintringham|title=New Ways of War|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.143095|publisher=Penguin|year=1940}}

• {{cite web|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk|title=The National Archives|access-date=26 August 2010|work=Repository of UK government records}}

{{Commons}}

{{Wiktionary}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20240125192947/https://winterwar.com/Weapons/FinAT/FINantitank2.htm#molotov winterwar.com – The Molotov cocktail]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060530031219/http://www.kevos4.com/Molotov_Cocktail.htm History of the Molotov cocktail] by William R. Trotter
• [http://www.popsci.com/archive-viewer?id=UycDAAAAMBAJ&pg=97&query=pursuit Homemade Tank Bomb] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171109174703/http://www.popsci.com/archive-viewer?id=UycDAAAAMBAJ&pg=97&query=pursuit |date=9 November 2017}} June 1941 Popular Science showing US public the Molotov Cocktail as used in the European Wars
• [http://ar.to/2010/08/red-blood-white-snow A Thousand Lakes of Red Blood on White Snow], a brief history of the subarctic origins of the Molotov cocktail in the Russo-Finnish Winter War of 1939–40

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