Flammable bottles were used as weapons during the Cuban war, during which the Latin American island republic gained independence from Spain in 1895. However, this simple device became a massive anti-tank weapon during the winter war of 1939-1940.
The overwhelming technical superiority of the Red Army made the defenders of the Mannerheim line think about using any, sometimes the most unexpected items as weapons. It is not known whether the Cuban experience was taken into account, or if someone again invented this munition, but the fact remains: the problems of the advancing Soviet troops, such as the cold, swamps that do not freeze under the snow, “cuckoo” snipers, minefields and powerful fortification, one more was added - the Molotov cocktail. It received its name in honor of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR, which was for Finns the personification of the aggressiveness of the policy of the Soviet Union in the late 30s. Actually, it initially sounded like a “cocktail for Molotov”.
The main advantages of the ammunition was its low cost and availability of manufacturing materials - qualities that are important for a country with small economic resources and undergoing constant bombing. There was a drawback, very significant. The Molotov cocktail was a source of danger for those who tried to use it. In other words, one had to try not to ignite oneself. A difficult task was to deliver it to the target, namely to the engine compartment of the tank. When a combustible substance hit the frontal armor, the Molotov cocktail was ineffective.
These inconveniences did not become an obstacle for the Soviet fighters two years later, when the USSR had to expand its own production of bottles with a combustible mixture. The Red Army did not have enough anti-tank weapons, so the Molotov cocktail began to enter its arsenal in early July 1941. Bottles of vodka, wine, citro and beer became containers for liquids "BGS" and "KS". Unlike regular aviation gasoline, they were sticky and burned, emitting large amounts of smoke, creating a temperature of up to 1000 degrees. What Molotov's cocktail consists of has become the prototype of napalm, invented a little later in the United States.
Appliances for setting fire to this projectile have undergone some modernization. The wick was lowered into the bottle, which should be ignited before the throw, and to do this correctly, instructions were glued to the surface of the glass. In addition, all infantry soldiers underwent training, during which they were explained in detail to tactics, security measures and weaknesses of German armored vehicles. So the Molotov cocktail was forced to become a formidable weapon of the Red Army in the first months of the war.
It could be assumed that in the age of nano-technology, laser sights, anti-tank guided missiles and other sophisticated ultra-precise hitting means, bottles with a combustible mixture became an anachronism, but this did not happen. All of their same advantages, namely ease of manufacture, affordability and cheapness, have survived to this day. That is why the Molotov cocktail is still used by those who lack modern weapons to fight a strong opponent. The main rule for the use of this simple projectile has remained unchanged: only one who has the courage to go towards a formidable tank with a glass bottle in his hand can effectively use it.