| President of Czechoslovakia | |
|---|---|
| Former political post | |
| Flag of Czechoslovakia | |
| Predecessor | |
| Successor | Václav Havel Michal Kováč |
| First officeholder | Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk |
| Last officeholder | Václav Havel |
| Political office started | 14 November 1918 |
| Political office ended | 20 July 1992 |
| Current pretender | None |
The President of Czechoslovakia was the head of state of Czechoslovakia, from the creation of the First Czechoslovak Republic in 1918 until the end of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic in 1992.
In periods when the post of the President of Czechoslovakia was vacant, some presidential duties were carried out by the Prime Minister: Jan Syrový (5 October 1938 – 30 November 1938), Klement Gottwald (7 June 1948 – 14 June 1948), Antonín Zápotocký (14 March 1953 – 21 March 1953), Viliam Široký (13 November 1957 – 19 November 1957), Josef Lenart (22 March 1968 – 30 March 1968), Marián Čalfa (10 December 1989 – 29 December 1989) and Jan Stráský (20 July 1992 – 31 December 1992). However, the Czechoslovak Constitutions do not define anything like a post of acting president, often misleadingly mentioned on English Wikipedia pages.
The second section lists the General Secretaries of the totalitarian Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) in 1948-1989, then possessing full control over the country and hence de facto representing the executive power.
National Democratic Party Czech Social Democratic Party Republican Party of Agricultural and Smallholder People Czech National Social Party Communist Party of Czechoslovakia Civic Democratic Party Non-partisan
| # | Portrait | Name | Born-Died | Assumed office | Left office | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (1918–1938) | ||||||
| 1 | Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk | 1850–1937 | 14 November 1918 | 14 December 1935 | Non-partisan | |
| 2 | Edvard Beneš | 1884–1948 | 18 December 1935 | 5 October 1938 | Czechoslovak National Social Party | |
| (1938–1939) | ||||||
| 3 | Emil Hácha | 1872–1945 | 30 November 1938 | 15 March 1939 | Non-partisan | |
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(1939–1945) Emil Hácha remained State President of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, a de jure autonomous region incorporated into Nazi Germany. Edvard Beneš proclaimed himself President within the Czechoslovak government-in-exile, recognized as the only legitimate Czechoslovak Government during the Second World War. Jozef Tiso became President of the quasi-independent, pro-Nazi and clero-fascist Slovak Republic. |
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| (1945–1948) | ||||||
| 4 | Edvard Beneš | 1884–1948 | 4 April 1945 | 7 June 1948 | Czechoslovak National Social Party | |
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(1948–1989) Official names: Czechoslovak Republic (1948–1960), Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1960–1990) |
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| 5 | Klement Gottwald | 1896–1953 | 14 June 1948 | 14 March 1953 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
| 6 | Antonín Zápotocký | 1884–1957 | 21 March 1953 | 13 November 1957 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
| 7 | Antonín Novotný | 1904–1975 | 19 November 1957 | 22 March 1968 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
| 8 | Ludvík Svoboda | 1895–1979 | 30 March 1968 | 28 May 1975 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
| 9 | Gustáv Husák | 1913–1991 | 29 May 1975 | 10 December 1989 | Communist Party of Czechoslovakia | |
| (1989–1992) | ||||||
| 10 | Václav Havel | 1935–2011 | 29 December 1989 | 20 July 1992 | Civic Forum / Non-partisan | |
| # | Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Klement Gottwald | April 1945 | 14 March 1953 | |
| 2 | Antonín Novotný | 14 March 1953 | 5 January 1968 | |
| 3 | Alexander Dubček | 5 January 1968 | 17 April 1969 | |
| 4 | Gustáv Husák | 17 April 1969 | 17 December 1987 | |
| 5 | Milouš Jakeš | 17 December 1987 | 24 November 1989 | |
| 6 | Karel Urbánek | 24 November 1989 | 20 December 1989 |
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