List of Presidents of Czechoslovakia
President of Czechoslovakia | |
---|---|
| |
Style | His Excellency |
Residence | Prague Castle |
Appointer | Federal Assembly |
Formation | 14 November 1918 |
First holder | Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk |
Final holder | Václav Havel |
Abolished | 20 July 1992 |
The President of Czechoslovakia was the head of state of Czechoslovakia, from the creation of the First Czechoslovak Republic in 1918 until the dissolution of the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic in 1992.
In periods when the presidency was vacant, most presidential duties were assumed by the Prime Minister. However, the Czechoslovak Constitutions never defined anything like a post of acting president.
The second section lists the General Secretaries of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) in 1945–1989. After the 1948 coup d'état, the General Secretary was the country's de facto chief executive. However, three general secretaries—Klement Gottwald, Antonín Novotný and Gustáv Husák—also served as president at some point in their tenures.
The last living former President of Czechoslovakia, Václav Havel, died in 2011.
There are currently two living former General Secretaries of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia—Miloš Jakeš and Karel Urbánek.
Presidents of Czechoslovakia (1918–1992)
Czechoslovak National Socialist Party Communist Party of Czechoslovakia Civic Forum Independent
No. | Portrait | Name | Lifespan | Ethnicity | Assumed office | Left office | Political Party |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
(1918–1938) | |||||||
1 | Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk | 1850–1937 | Czech | 14 November 1918 | 14 December 1935 | Independent | |
2 | Edvard Beneš | 1884–1948 | Czech | 18 December 1935 | 5 October 1938 | Czechoslovak National Socialist Party | |
(1938–1939) | |||||||
3 | Emil Hácha | 1872–1945 | Czech | 30 November 1938 | 15 March 1939 | Independent | |
(1939–1945) Emil Hácha remained State President of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, a de jure autonomous region incorporated into Nazi Germany.[1][2] Edvard Beneš proclaimed himself President within the Czechoslovak government-in-exile, recognized as the only legitimate Czechoslovak Government during World War II. Jozef Tiso became President of the quasi-independent, pro-Nazi and clero-fascist Slovak Republic. Avgustyn Voloshyn became President of the Carpatho-Ukraine few days before occupation by the Kingdom of Hungary. | |||||||
(1945–1948) | |||||||
4 | Edvard Beneš | 1884–1948 | Czech | 4 April 1945 | 7 June 1948 | Czechoslovak National Socialist Party | |
(1948–1989) Official names: Czechoslovak Republic (1948–1960), Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1960–1989) | |||||||
5 | Klement Gottwald | 1896–1953 | Czech | 14 June 1948 | 14 March 1953 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
6 | Antonín Zápotocký | 1884–1957 | Czech | 21 March 1953 | 13 November 1957 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
7 | Antonín Novotný | 1904–1975 | Czech | 19 November 1957 | 22 March 1968 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
8 | Ludvík Svoboda | 1895–1979 | Czech | 30 March 1968 | 28 May 1975 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
9 | Gustáv Husák | 1913–1991 | Slovak | 29 May 1975 | 10 December 1989 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
(1989–1992) Official names: Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1989–1990), Czech and Slovak Federative Republic (1990–1992) | |||||||
10 | Václav Havel | 1936–2011 | Czech | 29 December 1989 | 20 July 1992 | Civic Forum |
General Secretaries of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (1945–1989)
Titled as Chairman 1945–1953, First Secretary 1953–1971
No. | Portrait | Name | Lifespan | Ethnicity | Assumed office | Left office |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Klement Gottwald | 1896–1953 | Czech | April 1945 | 14 March 1953 | |
2 | Antonín Novotný | 1904–1975 | Czech | 14 March 1953 | 5 January 1968 | |
3 | Alexander Dubček | 1921–1992 | Slovak | 5 January 1968 | 17 April 1969 | |
4 | Gustáv Husák | 1913–1991 | Slovak | 17 April 1969 | 17 December 1987 | |
5 | Miloš Jakeš | 1922– | Czech | 17 December 1987 | 24 November 1989 | |
6 | Karel Urbánek | 1941– | Czech | 24 November 1989 | 20 December 1989 |
Timeline
References
- ↑ Rare 1943 Third Reich facts booklet
- ↑ Heavily illustrated rare big original 1943 Nazi book on Eastern Europe and Asia