The violent events of the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity resulted in the Molotov cocktail being one of the most searched recipes in Ukraine that year. The homemade incendiary device was used by anti-government protesters during clashes with riot police in Kiev. The cocktail is named after Soviet minister Vyacheslav Molotov, who planned to invade Finland before World War II. Ukrainians searching for the recipe were led to a Wikipedia page or rogue sites offering instructions on how to assemble one properly.
The year 2014 was a bloody and tumultuous time in Ukraine. In February of that year, violence in the capital, Kiev, reached a crescendo, as riot police and anti-government protesters clashed daily in the city, killing 130 people.
Highlighting the year’s violent events, when Google compiled its annual list of the most searched recipes, the “Molotov cocktail” (the homemade incendiary device) was more popular in Ukraine than typical favorites like pizza and pie.
The so-called Revolution of Dignity, also known as the Euromaidan revolution, was sparked when President Viktor Yanukovych abandoned a deal with the European Union in favor of stronger ties with Russia. Yanukovych was removed from office and fled to Russia on 22 February 2014. However, that was not the end of the violence, as the country was also rocked by subsequent crises in Crimea and Donbass.
Read more about the Molotov:
The Finns first came up with the term explosive in 1939. It was named after Vyacheslav Molotov, a Soviet minister who had masterminded a plan to invade Finland just before World War II broke out.
A Molotov cocktail begins with a flimsy glass bottle containing a flammable liquid — typically gasoline, diesel, methanol or turpentine — with a rag stuffed to the top. Detonation is simple: light the rag and throw.
Ukrainians who have searched for the homemade bomb have been led to a Wikipedia page offering a complete history of the device, or to rogue sites offering protesters instructions on how to assemble one properly.
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