Tomás Masaryk

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Lore & Background

Masaryk was born to a poor, working-class family in Hodonín, Moravia. His father Jozef Masárik was a Slovak carter and later steward and coachman; his mother Teresie was a Moravian cook. He studied at the University of Vienna under Franz Brentano, earning his Ph.D. in 1876 and completing his habilitation thesis on suicide in 1879. He married Charlotte Garrigue on 15 March 1878. In 1882 he was appointed professor of philosophy at the Czech Charles-Ferdinand University, and founded the magazine Athenaeum in 1883. He challenged the authenticity of the epic poems Rukopisy královedvorský a zelenohorský and contested the Jewish blood libel during the 1899 Hilsner trial. Masaryk served in the Reichsrat from 1891 to 1893 with the Young Czech Party and from 1907 to 1914 with the Czech Progressive Party, which he founded in 1900. He helped Hinko Hinković defend the Croat-Serb Coalition during their 1909 Vienna trial, where members received sentences totaling over 150 years in prison. At the outbreak of World War I in 1914, he concluded that independence was the best course and went into exile in December 1914 with his daughter Olga, traveling through Western Europe, Russia, the United States, and Japan.

Reader's Guide

Masaryk's significance lies in his role as the principal architect of Czechoslovak statehood. During exile, he was pivotal in establishing the Czechoslovak Legion in Russia as an effective fighting force on the Allied side, holding a Serbian passport. In 1915 he became professor of Slavic Research at King's College London, lecturing on the problem of small nations. In January 1917, supported by Norman Hapgood, he wrote the first memorandum to President Wilson concerning the need for an independent Czechoslovak state. In 1918, with Edvard Beneš and Milan Rastislav Štefánik, he traveled to the United States to obtain support from President Woodrow Wilson and Secretary of State Robert Lansing, resulting in the Washington Declaration. With the fall of Austria-Hungary in late 1918, Masaryk was recognized as head of the provisional government and formally elected president in November. He was reelected three times, presiding over a period of stability as Czechoslovakia emerged as a strong democratic state. He resigned in 1935 due to old age, was succeeded by Beneš, retired to the village of Lány, and died two years later at age 87.

Did You Know?

• Masaryk's father Jozef Masárik was a carter and later the steward and coachman at the imperial estate in Hodonín.
• Masaryk completed his habilitation thesis on suicide as a social mass phenomenon in 1879.
• He helped defend the Croat-Serb Coalition during their 1909 Vienna trial, where members received sentences totaling over 150 years in prison.
• During World War I, Masaryk held a Serbian passport while pivotal in establishing the Czechoslovak Legion in Russia.
• Masaryk's intelligence network, working with Emanuel Viktor Voska's American counterespionage network, was critical in uncovering the Hindu–German Conspiracy in San Francisco.

Philosophical Roots and the Educator's Vision

Masaryk's intellectual formation was shaped by the nineteenth-century respect for scientific evidence. After grammar school in Brno and Vienna from 1865 to 1872, he studied at the University of Vienna under Franz Brentano, earning his Ph.D. in 1876 and completing his habilitation thesis 'Der Selbstmord als soziale Massenerscheinung der modernen Civilisation' in 1879. From 1876 to 1879 he studied in Leipzig with Wilhelm Wundt and Edmund Husserl. Appointed professor of philosophy at the Czech Charles-Ferdinand University in 1882, he founded the magazine Athenaeum the following year. His philosophical convictions ran directly into his politics: he believed social problems and political conflicts were the results of ignorance, and that a proper scientific approach to studying underlying causes could yield correct solutions. This led him to see his role as an educator who would enlighten the public from ignorance and apathy. He applied this evidence-driven mindset to challenge the authenticity of the epic poems Rukopisy královedvorský a zelenohorský, which he viewed as presenting false nationalistic Czech chauvinism, and he publicly contested the Jewish blood libel during the 1899 Hilsner trial. His students included Edvard Beneš.

From Imperial Parliament to Exile

Masaryk entered the Austrian Reichsrat in 1891 with the Young Czech Party, serving until 1893, and returned from 1907 to 1914 with the Czech Progressive Party, which he had founded in 1900. During these years he was an advocate of restructuring the Austro-Hungarian Empire into a federal state, not yet campaigning for independence. He demonstrated his commitment to cross-ethnic solidarity by helping Hinko Hinković defend the Croat-Serb Coalition during their 1909 Vienna political trial, in which members were sentenced to a total of over 150 years in prison, with a number of death sentences. The outbreak of World War I in 1914 marked a decisive turning point. Masaryk concluded that the best course was to seek independence for Czechs and Slovaks from Austria-Hungary. He went into exile in December 1914 with his daughter Olga, staying in several places in Western Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States and Japan. During this period he delivered lectures and wrote several articles and memoranda supporting the Czechoslovak cause, and began organizing Czechs and Slovaks outside Austria-Hungary, establishing contacts crucial to Czechoslovak independence.

The Legion and the Washington Declaration

While in exile, Masaryk played a pivotal role in establishing the Czechoslovak Legion in Russia as an effective fighting force on the Allied side during World War I, when he held a Serbian passport. In 1915 he was one of the first staff members of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (now part of University College London), and became professor of Slavic Research at King's College London, lecturing on the problem of small nations. On 19 October 1915 he gave the inaugural address at the newly opened School of Slavonic Studies at King's College London on 'The Problem of Small Nations in the European Crisis'. In January 1917, supported by Norman Hapgood, he wrote the first memorandum to President Wilson concerning the need for the creation of an independent Czechoslovak state. In 1918, Masaryk, along with his protégés Edvard Beneš and Milan Rastislav Štefánik, traveled to the United States to obtain support from President Woodrow Wilson and Secretary of State Robert Lansing. Their negotiations resulted in the Washington Declaration, which proclaimed the independence of a Czechoslovak state. During World War I and afterwards, Masaryk supported the unification of the Kingdom of Serbia with the Kingdom of Montenegro. He championed feminist causes, influenced by his wife Charlotte Garrigue, and his progressive ideas strongly influenced the Washington Declaration.

The Founding President and a Quiet Farewell

With the fall of Austria-Hungary in late 1918, the First Czechoslovak Republic received recognition from the Allied powers and Masaryk was recognized as head of its provisional government. He was formally elected president in November 1918, and was reelected three times subsequently. Masaryk presided over a period of stability as Czechoslovakia emerged as a strong democratic state. He resigned from office in 1935 due to old age, and was succeeded by Beneš. He retired to the village of Lány and died two years later at the age of 87.

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