Colonel Tov Kronsteen is a fictional character from the James Bond novel From Russia With Love by Ian Fleming, and of the film of the same name, released in 1963. He was portrayed in the film by Vladek Sheybal.

Col Tov Kronsteen in ‘From Russia With Love’.

In the novel Kronsteen was the head of the planning department for SMERSH. He was a Chess grand master and the champion of Moscow for two years running. During the championship game for his third year Kronsteen was called away by SMERSH to come up with a plan to kill and discredit James Bond. He actually survives the novel and never meets James Bond.

In the film, Kronsteen is a Czechoslovakian chess champion who works for SPECTRE and was tasked with inventing a plan to kill and disgrace James Bond as revenge for the “murder” of Dr Julius No. Kronsteen is first seen playing chess in Venice; he wins shortly after he is given a message under his glass of water. Kronsteen leaves after the match and reports to Rosa Klebb and Ernst Stavro Blofeld. He explains his plan to his superiors.

But in the end, Bond survives the plot. Kronsteen tries to defend himself by shifting the blame partly to Morzeny. Blofeld is irked by Kronsteen’s smugness and stabs him in the leg and kills him.

Kronsteen is the first henchman to be killed by his boss. During the film, Blofeld refers to him at certain points as Number 5.

See also:

• Bond henchmen