Mikhail Kalashnikov
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Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov ( rus, Михаи́л Тимофе́евич Кала́шников, p=kɐˈlaʂnʲɪkəf; 10 November 1919 – 23 December 2013) was a Soviet and Russian
lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
, inventor,
military engineer Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics ...
, writer, and
small arms A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes c ...
designer. He is most famous for developing the
AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...
assault rifle and its improvements, the
AKM The AKM () is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It is the most ubiquitous rifle of the Kalashnikov rifles. It was developed as a replacement to the AK-47 introduced a decade prior. Introduc ...
and
AK-74 The AK-74 ( Russian: , tr. ''Avtomat Kalashnikova obraztsa 1974 goda'', lit. 'Kalashnikov assault rifle model 1974) is an assault rifle designed by small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1974. While primarily associated with the Soviet ...
, as well as the
PK machine gun The PK (russian: Пулемёт Калашникова, transliterated as ''Pulemyot Kalashnikova'', or "Kalashnikov's machine gun"), is a belt-fed general-purpose machine gun, chambered for the 7.62×54mmR rimmed cartridge. Designed in the ...
and
RPK The RPK (russian: Ручной пулемёт Калашникова/РПК, Ruchnoy Pulemyot Kalashnikova, link=no, English: "Kalashnikov hand-held machine gun"), sometimes retroactively termed the RPK-47, is a Soviet 7.62×39mm light machine ...
light machine gun A light machine gun (LMG) is a light-weight machine gun designed to be operated by a single infantryman, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. LMGs firing cartridges of the same caliber as the other riflemen of the sam ...
. Kalashnikov was, according to himself, a self-taught tinkerer who combined innate mechanical skills with the study of weaponry to design arms that achieved battlefield ubiquity. Even though Kalashnikov felt sorrow at the weapons' uncontrolled distribution, he took pride in his inventions and in their reputation for reliability, emphasizing that his rifle is "a weapon of defense" and "not a weapon for offense".


Early life

Kalashnikov was born in the village of Kurya, in present-day Altai Krai,
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, as the seventeenth child of the 19 children of Aleksandra Frolovna Kalashnikova (née Kaverina) and Timofey Aleksandrovich Kalashnikov, who were peasants. In 1930, his father and most of his family had their properties confiscated and were
deported Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...
as
kulak Kulak (; russian: кула́к, r=kulák, p=kʊˈlak, a=Ru-кулак.ogg; plural: кулаки́, ''kulakí'', 'fist' or 'tight-fisted'), also kurkul () or golchomag (, plural: ), was the term which was used to describe peasants who owned ove ...
s to the village of Nizhnyaya Mokhovaya,
Tomsk Oblast Tomsk Oblast (russian: То́мская о́бласть, ''Tomskaya oblast'') is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It lies in the southeastern West Siberian Plain, in the southwest of the Siberian Federal District. Its administrative ...
. In his youth, Mikhail suffered from various illnesses and was on the verge of death at age six. He was attracted to all kinds of machinery, but also wrote poetry, dreaming of becoming a poet. He went on to write six books and continued to write poetry all of his life. After deportation to Tomsk Oblast, his family had to combine farming with hunting, and thus Mikhail frequently used his father's rifle in his teens. Kalashnikov continued hunting into his 90s. After completing seventh grade, Mikhail, with his stepfather's permission, left his family and returned to Kurya, hiking for nearly 1,000 km. In Kurya, he found a job in mechanics at a tractor station. A party organizer embedded within the factory noticed the man's dexterity and issued him a directive (''napravlenie'') to work at a nearby weapons design bureau, where he was employed as a tester of fitted stocks in rifles. In 1938, he was conscripted into the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
. Because of his small size and engineering skills he was assigned as a tank mechanic, and later became a tank commander. While training, he made his first inventions, which concerned not only tanks, but also small weapons, and was personally awarded a wrist watch by
Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov ( rus, Георгий Константинович Жуков, p=ɡʲɪˈorɡʲɪj kənstɐnʲˈtʲinəvʲɪtɕ ˈʐukəf, a=Ru-Георгий_Константинович_Жуков.ogg; 1 December 1896 – ...
. Kalashnikov served on the
T-34 The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank introduced in 1940. When introduced its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was less powerful than its contemporaries while its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against anti-tank weapons. The C ...
s of the 24th Tank Regiment, 108th Tank Division stationed in Stryi before the regiment retreated after the Battle of Brody in June 1941. He was wounded in combat in the
Battle of Bryansk The Battle of Bryansk (2–21 October 1941) was a twenty-day battle during World War II conducted in the Bryansk Oblast as a part of the overall Moscow campaign. Returning from the Kiev operation, Heinz Guderian attacked in an unexpected direc ...
in October 1941 and hospitalised until April 1942. In the last few months of being in hospital, he overheard some fellow soldiers bemoaning their current rifles, which were plagued with reliability issues, such as jamming. As he continued to overhear the complaints that the Soviet soldiers had, as soon as he was discharged, he went to work on what would become the famous
AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...
assault rifle. Seeing the drawbacks of the standard infantry weapons at the time, he decided to construct a new rifle for the Soviet military. During this time Kalashnikov began designing a
submachine gun A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an autom ...
. Although his first submachine gun design was not accepted into service, his talent as a designer was noticed. From 1942 onwards, Kalashnikov was assigned to the Central Scientific-developmental Firing Range for Rifle Firearms of the Chief Artillery Directorate of the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
. In 1944, he designed a gas-operated carbine for the new
7.62×39mm The 7.62×39mm (aka 7.62 Soviet, formerly .30 Russian Short) round is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge of Soviet origin. The cartridge is widely used due to the worldwide proliferation of Russian SKS and AK-47 pattern rifles, as ...
cartridge Cartridge may refer to: Objects * Cartridge (firearms), a type of modern ammunition * ROM cartridge, a removable component in an electronic device * Cartridge (respirator), a type of filter used in respirators Other uses * Cartridge (surname), a ...
. This weapon, influenced by the
Garand The M1 Garand or M1 rifleOfficially designated as U.S. rifle, caliber .30, M1, later simply called Rifle, Caliber .30, M1, also called US Rifle, Cal. .30, M1 is a semi-automatic rifle that was the service rifle of the U.S Army during World War ...
rifle design, lost out to the new Simonov carbine which would be eventually adopted as the SKS; but it became a basis for his entry in an assault rifle competition in 1946. His winning entry, the "Mikhtim" (so named by taking the first letters of his name and patronymic, Mikhail Timofeyevich) became the prototype for the development of a family of prototype rifles. This process culminated in 1947, when he designed the
AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...
(standing for ''Avtomat Kalashnikova model 1947''). In 1949, the AK became the standard issue assault rifle of the
Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...
and went on to become Kalashnikov's most famous invention. While developing his first assault rifles, Kalashnikov competed with two much more experienced weapon designers,
Vasily Degtyaryov Vasily Alekseyevich Degtyaryov (russian: Васи́лий Алексе́евич Дегтярёв; 2 January 1880, Tula – 16 January 1949, Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian engineer who specialized in weapons design. He was awarded the title ...
and
Georgy Shpagin Georgy Semyonovich Shpagin (russian: Георгий Семёнович Шпагин; 17 April 1897 – 6 February 1952) was a Russian weapons designer. He is best known as the creator of the famous PPSh-41 submachine gun, as well as working with ...
, who both accepted the superiority of the AK-47 design. Kalashnikov named Alexandr Zaitsev and Vladimir Deikin as his major collaborators during those years.


Later career

From 1949, Mikhail Kalashnikov lived and worked in
Izhevsk Izhevsk (russian: Иже́вск, p=ɪˈʐɛfsk; udm, Ижкар, ''Ižkar'', or , ''Iž'') is the capital city of Udmurtia, Russia. It is situated along the Izh River, west of the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe. It is the 21st-largest city i ...
,
Udmurtia Udmurtia (russian: Удму́ртия, r=Udmúrtiya, p=ʊˈdmurtʲɪjə; udm, Удмуртия, ''Udmurtija''), or the Udmurt Republic (russian: Удмуртская Республика, udm, Удмурт Республика, Удмурт ...
. He held a degree of Doctor of Technical Sciences (1971) and was a member of 16 academies. Over the course of his career, he evolved the basic design into a weapons family. The
AKM The AKM () is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It is the most ubiquitous rifle of the Kalashnikov rifles. It was developed as a replacement to the AK-47 introduced a decade prior. Introduc ...
(russian: link=Yes, Автомат Кала́шникова Модернизированный , lit=Kalashnikov modernized assault rifle), first brought into service in 1959, was lighter and cheaper to manufacture, owing to the use of a stamped steel receiver (in place of the AK-47's milled steel receiver) and contained detail improvements such as a re-shaped stock and muzzle compensator. From the AKM, he developed a
squad automatic weapon A squad automatic weapon (SAW), also known as a section automatic weapon or light support weapon (LSW), is a man-portable automatic firearm attached to infantry squads or sections as a source of rapid direct firepower. Weapons fulfilling th ...
variant, known as the
RPK The RPK (russian: Ручной пулемёт Калашникова/РПК, Ruchnoy Pulemyot Kalashnikova, link=no, English: "Kalashnikov hand-held machine gun"), sometimes retroactively termed the RPK-47, is a Soviet 7.62×39mm light machine ...
(russian: link=no, Ручной пулемет Кала́шникова , lit=Kalashnikov light machine gun). He also developed the general-purpose
PK machine gun The PK (russian: Пулемёт Калашникова, transliterated as ''Pulemyot Kalashnikova'', or "Kalashnikov's machine gun"), is a belt-fed general-purpose machine gun, chambered for the 7.62×54mmR rimmed cartridge. Designed in the ...
(russian: link=no, Пулемет Кала́шникова , lit=Kalashnikov machine gun), which used the more powerful
7.62×54mmR The 7.62×54mmR is a rimmed rifle cartridge developed by the Russian Empire and introduced as a service cartridge in 1891. Originally designed for the bolt-action Mosin–Nagant rifle, it was used during the late tsarist era and throughout th ...
cartridge of the Mosin–Nagant rifle. It is cartridge belt-fed, not magazine-fed, as it is intended to provide heavy sustained fire from a tripod mount, or be used as a light, bipod-mounted weapon. The common characteristics of all these weapons are simple design, ruggedness and ease of maintenance in all operating conditions. Approximately 100 million AK-47 assault rifles had been produced by 2009, and about half of them are counterfeit, manufactured at a rate of about a million per year.
Izhmash JSC Kalashnikov Concern (), known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (), is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital ci ...
, the official manufacturer of AK-47 in Russia, did not patent the weapon until 1997, and in 2006 accounted for only 10% of the world's production. This arm became famous due to its reliability in the most extreme climatic conditions, functioning as perfectly in the desert as in the tundra. It is in official use by the militaries of 55 nations, and has been so influential in military struggle that it has been used on national flags. Prominent examples include the flags of
Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
and
Hezbollah Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
, as well as the
East Timorese East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-wester ...
and
Zimbabwean Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Moza ...
coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its wh ...
. Kalashnikov himself claimed he was always motivated by service to his country rather than money, and made no direct profit from weapon production. He did however own 30% of a German company Marken Marketing International (MMI) run by his grandson Igor. The company revamps trademarks and produces merchandise carrying the Kalashnikov name, such as
vodka Vodka ( pl, wódka , russian: водка , sv, vodka ) is a clear distilled alcoholic beverage. Different varieties originated in Poland, Russia, and Sweden. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impuriti ...
, umbrellas and knives. One of the items is a knife named for the
AK-74 The AK-74 ( Russian: , tr. ''Avtomat Kalashnikova obraztsa 1974 goda'', lit. 'Kalashnikov assault rifle model 1974) is an assault rifle designed by small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1974. While primarily associated with the Soviet ...
. During a visit to the United States in the early 2000s, Kalashnikov was invited to tour a Virginia holding site for the forthcoming American Wartime Museum. Kalashnikov, a former tank commander, became visibly moved at the sight of his old tank in action, painted with his name in
Cyrillic , bg, кирилица , mk, кирилица , russian: кириллица , sr, ћирилица, uk, кирилиця , fam1 = Egyptian hieroglyphs , fam2 = Proto-Sinaitic , fam3 = Phoenician , fam4 = G ...
.


Death

After a prolonged illness, Kalashnikov was hospitalized on 17 November 2013, in an Udmurtian medical facility in
Izhevsk Izhevsk (russian: Иже́вск, p=ɪˈʐɛfsk; udm, Ижкар, ''Ižkar'', or , ''Iž'') is the capital city of Udmurtia, Russia. It is situated along the Izh River, west of the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe. It is the 21st-largest city i ...
, the capital of
Udmurtia Udmurtia (russian: Удму́ртия, r=Udmúrtiya, p=ʊˈdmurtʲɪjə; udm, Удмуртия, ''Udmurtija''), or the Udmurt Republic (russian: Удмуртская Республика, udm, Удмурт Республика, Удмурт ...
and where he lived. He died 23 December 2013, at age 94 from gastric hemorrhage. In January 2014, a letter that Kalashnikov wrote six months before his death to the leader of the
Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...
,
Patriarch Kirill Kirill or Cyril (russian: link=Russian, Кирилл, chu, , secular name Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev, russian: link=no, Владимир Михайлович Гундяев; born 20 November 1946) is a Russian Orthodox bishop. He became ...
, was published by the Russian daily newspaper ''
Izvestia ''Izvestia'' ( rus, Известия, p=ɪzˈvʲesʲtʲɪjə, "The News") is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Russia. Founded in 1917, it was a newspaper of record in the Soviet Union until the Soviet Union's dissolution in 1991, and describes ...
''. In the letter, he stated that he was suffering "spiritual pain" about whether he was responsible for the deaths caused by the weapons he created. Translated from the published letter he states, "I keep having the same unsolved question: if my rifle claimed people's lives, then can it be that I... a Christian and an Orthodox believer, was to blame for their deaths?" The patriarch wrote back, thanked Kalashnikov, and said that he "was an example of patriotism and a correct attitude toward the country". Kirill added about the design responsibility for the deaths by the rifle, "the church has a well-defined position when the weapon is defense of the Motherland, the Church supports its creators and the military, which use it." He became one of the first people buried in the
Federal Military Memorial Cemetery The Federal Military Memorial Cemetery (Russian: Федеральное военное мемориальное кладбище) is a national cemetery of Russia, located in Mytishchinsky District, Moscow Oblast, on the north-eastern outskirts o ...
.


Family

Kalashnikov's father, Timofey Aleksandrovich Kalashnikov (1883–1930), was a peasant. He completed two grades of parochial school and could read and write. In 1901, he married Aleksandra Frolovna Kaverina (1884–1957), who was illiterate throughout her life. They had 19 children, but only eight survived to adult age; Kalashnikov was born 17th, and was close to death at age six. In 1930, the government labeled Timofey Aleksandrovich a
kulak Kulak (; russian: кула́к, r=kulák, p=kʊˈlak, a=Ru-кулак.ogg; plural: кулаки́, ''kulakí'', 'fist' or 'tight-fisted'), also kurkul () or golchomag (, plural: ), was the term which was used to describe peasants who owned ove ...
, confiscated his property, and deported him to Siberia, along with most of the family. The eldest three siblings, daughters Agasha (b. 1905) and Anna and son Victor, were already married by 1930, and remained in Kuriya. After her husband's death in 1930, Aleksandra Frolovna married Efrem Kosach, a widower who had three children of his own. Mikhail Kalashnikov married twice, the first time to Ekaterina Danilovna Astakhova of Altai Krai. He married the second time to Ekaterina Viktorovna Moiseyeva (1921–1977). She was an engineer and did much technical drawing work for her husband. They had four children: daughters Nelli (b. 1942), Elena (b. 1948) and Natalya (1953–1983), and a son
Victor The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...
(1942–2018). Victor also became a prominent small arms designer. The title to the AK-47 trademark belonged to Mikhail Kalashnikov's family until 4 April 2016, when the
Kalashnikov Concern JSC Kalashnikov Concern (), known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (), is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital ci ...
won a lawsuit to invalidate the registration of the trademark.


Weapon designs

During his career, Kalashnikov designed about 150 models of small weapons. The most famous of them are: *
AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...
*
AKM The AKM () is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It is the most ubiquitous rifle of the Kalashnikov rifles. It was developed as a replacement to the AK-47 introduced a decade prior. Introduc ...
*
AK-74 The AK-74 ( Russian: , tr. ''Avtomat Kalashnikova obraztsa 1974 goda'', lit. 'Kalashnikov assault rifle model 1974) is an assault rifle designed by small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1974. While primarily associated with the Soviet ...
/ AKS-74U / AK-74M / AKS-74 *
AK-101 The AK-101 is an assault rifle of the Kalashnikov series. It's marketed at those looking for a weapon that combines the logistical compatibility and familiarity of the 5.56×45mm NATO round with the reliability of a Kalashnikov. The design of t ...
/
AK-102 The AK-102 is a shortened carbine version of the AK-101 rifle, which was derived from the original AK-47 design and its AK-74 successor. The AK-102 is chambered to fire 5.56×45mm NATO ammunition, and is made exclusively for export purposes. ...
*
AK-103 The AK-103 is a Russian assault rifle designed by small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov. History The AK-103 was officially offered for export in March 1993 Design details It is an AK-100 derivative of the AK-74M that is chambered for t ...
/
AK-104 The AK-104 is a carbine variant of the AK-103. It's chambered to fire 7.62×39mm ammunition and thusly feeds from any standard 7.62x39 AK pattern magazine. Design The AK-104 is a 314mm (12.4in) barreled carbine in the AK-100 series of rifles, ...
*
AK-105 The AK-105 is a shortened carbine version of the AK-74M rifle, which in turn was derived from the original AK-47 design and its successor, the AK-74. It's chambered to fire 5.45×39mm ammunition. Design Compared to the AK-74M, AK-101, and AK-103 ...
*
AK-12 The AK-12 is a Russian assault rifle chambered in 5.45×39mm designed and manufactured by the Kalashnikov Concern (formerly Izhmash), making it the fifth generation of Kalashnikov rifles. The Kalashnikov Concern also offers a variant of the AK ...
*
RPK The RPK (russian: Ручной пулемёт Калашникова/РПК, Ruchnoy Pulemyot Kalashnikova, link=no, English: "Kalashnikov hand-held machine gun"), sometimes retroactively termed the RPK-47, is a Soviet 7.62×39mm light machine ...
/ RPK-74 * PK / PKM / PKP *
Saiga semi-automatic rifle The Saiga semi-automatic rifles (/ˈsaɪɡə/, Saiga) ( rus, сайга, r=Sayga) are a family of Russian semi-automatic rifles manufactured by Kalashnikov Concern (formerly Izhmash), which also manufactures the original AK-47 and its variants, ...


Awards and tribute

''Incorporates information from the corresponding article in the Russian Wikipedia'' * Recipients of the
Order of St. Andrew The Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called (russian: Орден Святого апостола Андрея Первозванного, translit=Orden Svyatogo apostola Andreya Pervozvannogo) is the highest order conferred by both the ...
*In 1998, he was awarded an Order of Saint Andrew the Protoclete * On his 90th birthday on 10 November 2009, Kalashnikov was named a " Hero of the Russian Federation" and presented with a medal by
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Dmitry Medvedev who lauded him for creating "the brand every Russian is proud of" * In 2012,
Izhevsk State Technical University Izhevsk (russian: Иже́вск, p=ɪˈʐɛfsk; udm, Ижкар, ''Ižkar'', or , ''Iž'') is the capital city of Udmurtia, Russia. It is situated along the Izh River, west of the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe. It is the 21st-largest city i ...
was named after Kalashnikov * On 7 November 2014 a statue of Kalashnikov was unveiled at the
Russian 102nd Military Base The Russian 102nd Military Base ( hy, Ռուսական 102-րդ ռազմակայան; russian: 102-я российская военная база) is a Russian military base in Gyumri, Armenia, under the command of the Southern Military Distri ...
in
Gyumri Gyumri ( hy, Գյումրի, ) is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city w ...
,
Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
. Armenian Defense Minister
Seyran Ohanyan Seyran Musheghi Ohanyan ( hy, Սեյրան Մուշեղի Օհանյան; born 1 July 1962) is an Armenian general and politician currently serving as a deputy in the National Assembly of Armenia. He served as Defence Minister of Armenia from 1 ...
attended the opening ceremony. * On 19 September 2017 a monument of Kalashnikov was unveiled in
Garden Ring The Garden Ring, also known as the "B" Ring (russian: Садо́вое кольцо́, кольцо́ "Б"; transliteration: ''Sadovoye Koltso''), is a circular ring road avenue around central Moscow, its course corresponding to what used to b ...
, central Moscow. A protester, later detained by police, attempted to unfurl a banner reading "a creator of weapons is a creator of death".


Russian Federation

; Decorations * Hero of the Russian Federation (2009) *
Order of St. Andrew The Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called (russian: Орден Святого апостола Андрея Первозванного, translit=Orden Svyatogo apostola Andreya Pervozvannogo) is the highest order conferred by both the ...
(2008) *
Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" The Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" (russian: Орден «За заслуги перед Отечеством», ''Orden "Za zaslugi pered Otechestvom"'') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was instituted on 2 March 1994 by P ...
, 2nd class (1994) * Order of Military Merit (2004) ; Awards *State Prize of the Russian Federation in the field of design (1997) *Award of the President of the Russian Federation in the field of education (2003) *All-Russian Literary Prize of Suvorov (2009) ; Honorary diplomas *Diploma of the Government of the Russian Federation (1997, 1999) ; Medals *Jubilee Medal "50 Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" *Medal "Symbol of Science" (2007) *Gold
Medal of Zhukov The Medal of Zhukov (russian: медаль Жукова) is a state award of the Russian Federation initially awarded to veterans of the Great Patriotic War but now awarded to serving members of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. It is ...
*Medal "For outstanding contribution to the development of the collection business in Russia" ; Acknowledgements *Gratitude of the President of the Russian Federation (1997,1999,2002,2007)


Soviet

;Honors * Hero of Socialist Labour (1958, 1976) *
Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...
(1958, 1969, 1976) *
Order of the October Revolution The Order of the October Revolution (russian: Орден Октябрьской Революции, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferr ...
(1974) *
Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...
(1949) *
Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War (russian: Орден Отечественной войны, Orden Otechestvennoy voiny) is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisan ...
, 1st Class (1985) *
Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...
(1957) *
Order of Friendship of Peoples The Order of Friendship of Peoples (russian: oрден Дружбы народов, translit=orden Druzhby narodov) was an order of the Soviet Union, and was awarded to persons (including non-citizens), organizations, enterprises, military unit ...
(1982) ;Medals *Medal "Hammer and Sickle" (1958,1976) *Medal "For Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945" *Medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" *Medal "In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" *Jubilee Medal "Thirty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" *Jubilee Medal "Forty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" *Medal "For Distinction in Guarding the State Border of the USSR" *Medal "Veteran of Labor" on behalf of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR *Jubilee Medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy" *Jubilee Medal "40 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" *Jubilee Medal "50 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" *Jubilee Medal "60 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" *Jubilee Medal "70 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" *Medal "In Commemoration of the 800th anniversary of Moscow" ;Awards *
Stalin Prize Stalin Prize may refer to: * The State Stalin Prize in science and engineering and in arts, awarded 1941 to 1954, later known as the USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, ...
(1949) * Lenin Prize (1964)


Foreign decorations

*Order of Honour of Belarus (1999) *
Order of Friendship The Order of Friendship (russian: Орден Дружбы, ') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation established by Boris Yeltsin by presidential decree 442 of 2 March 1994 to reward Russian and foreign nationals whose work, deeds ...
, First Class (2003)


Other honors

*the home of Mikhail Kalashnikov in the village he set Courier lifetime bronze bust (1980) *the name of the designer named projected prospect in Izhevsk (1994) *"Honorary Citizen of the Altai Territory" (1997) *Ministry of Economy of Russia award – The sign "of small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov" (1997) *Union of scientific and engineering organizations and the Government of Udmurtia established an award named after Mikhail Kalashnikov (1999) *Diamond company "Alrosa" extracted 29 December 1995 gem diamonds weighing 50.74 carats given the name "designer Mikhail Kalashnikov" (14.5 x 15, 0h15, 5 mm, quality Stones Black) (1999) *Mikhail Kalashnikov Cadet School in Votkinsk (2002) *Award in his name at the School of Weapon Skills of Izhevsk (2002) *Izhevsk State Cultural Institution "Museum of Mikhail Kalashnikov" *"Honorary Engineer of Kazakhstan" (Kazakhstan; 2004) *Gift from President Hugo Chávez, the highest award of the Republic – a copy of the famous sword of Simon Bolivar, which is a relic of Venezuela and the copy is equal to the highest award of the country (2009) *The name of Mikhail Kalashnikov was given to the military department of the Mining Institute in St. Petersburg (2009) *
Izhevsk State Technical University Izhevsk (russian: Иже́вск, p=ɪˈʐɛfsk; udm, Ижкар, ''Ižkar'', or , ''Iž'') is the capital city of Udmurtia, Russia. It is situated along the Izh River, west of the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe. It is the 21st-largest city i ...
was awarded the name of Mikhail Kalashnikov (2012) *German knife company Boker has dedicated a series to him (2013) *The companies that make Kalashnikov rifles, Izhmash and Izhevsk Mechanical Plant were merged and formally renamed
Kalashnikov Concern JSC Kalashnikov Concern (), known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (), is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital ci ...
.Smith, Matthew (12 August 2013
Izhmash formally renamed Kalashnikov
IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
(2013)


References


Further reading

* * ''Ружье. Оружие и амуниция'' double/special issue of 1997/5-6 has a fairly complete inventory of Kalashnikov's designs. Issues 1 and 2 of the same magazine from 1999 have articles on Kalashnikov's 1st sub-machine gun (1942

http://www.sinopa.ee/kalashnikov/r9899/ruzjo0199/ruz019930/ru019930.htm] and respectively his first rifle (1944–45

http://www.sinopa.ee/kalashnikov/r9899/ruzjo0299/ruzjo029904/ru029904.htm]. * ''The Gun'' by C.J. Chivers thoroughly describes Mikhails early home life and retails the history of the AK-47, it’s distribution, and entrance into prevalence. * Kalashnikov AK-47 - biography film (2020)


External links


M.T. Kalashnikov Museum and Exhibition Small Arms Complex


– Interview with and article on Mikhail Kalashnikov at the age of 83, from
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
newspaper.
Mikhail Kalashnikov backs weapons controlBBC NEWS Profile: Mikhail KalashnikovFree illustrated virtual guided tour of the Museum of Mikhail Kalashnikov

The life of Mikhail Kalashnikov


Kalashikov model 1944 light machine gun—his 2nd design.
The Economist: Obituary 11 January 2014
Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov, weapons inventor, died on 23 December, aged 94 {{DEFAULTSORT:Kalashnikov, Mikhail 1919 births 2013 deaths 20th-century Russian engineers 20th-century Russian inventors People from Altai Krai Communist Party of the Russian Federation members Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Third convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Seventh convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Eighth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Ninth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Tenth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Eleventh convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Heroes of the Russian Federation Heroes of Socialist Labour Stalin Prize winners Lenin Prize winners Recipients of the Medal "For Distinction in Guarding the State Border of the USSR" Recipients of the Medal of Zhukov Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of Military Merit (Russia) Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Recipients of the Order of the Red Star Recipients of the Order of Saint Righteous Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy, 2nd class State Prize of the Russian Federation laureates Firearm designers Tank commanders United Russia politicians Weapons scientists and engineers Russian inventors Russian lieutenant generals Russian military engineers Russian Orthodox Christians from Russia Soviet engineers Soviet inventors Soviet military engineers Soviet military personnel of World War II Burials at the Federal Military Memorial Cemetery