Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the first president of Czechoslovakia, was born on March 7, 1850, in Hodonin, Moravia. During his youth, Masaryk worked as a blacksmith and attended the gymnasium in the Moravian capital of Brünn and later in Vienna. In 1872 Masaryk enrolled at Vienna University and graduated in 1876 with a degree in philosophy. The following year he worked as a private tutor in Leipzig, where he met his future wife, Charlotte Garrigue. For the next few years, Masaryk taught as an unsalaried tutor at Vienna University. In 1882 he was appointed professor extraordinarius of philosophy at the University of Prague and nominated to a full professorship in 1897. Masaryk's embrace of Western ideas in sociology and political science (as opposed to Czech romanticism) can be seen in his writings for two journals: Athenäum and As. In these publications, he endeavored to synthesize German idealism and West European positivism and provide a critical examination of Czech culture and science. He wrote extensively on Russian history, Pan-Slavism, religion, philosophy, and in strong opposition to Marxism.

Masaryk's religious beliefs changed with time. In 1880 he completely abandoned Catholicism for Protestantism. He later discontinued his affiliation with Christianity and embraced agnosticism.

In the Austrian Reichsrat and the Bohemian Landtag, Masaryk served as deputy of the Young Czech (Liberal) Party from 1891 to 1893. In 1907 he served as deputy for the moderately left liberalist Realist party and strongly resisted the Dual Monarchy's alliance with Germany and its annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1908.

At the onset of World War I, Masaryk journeyed to Western Europe to promote the cause of Czech statehood. From 1914 to 1918, he argued for Czech independence in Switzerland, France, Britain, Italy, Russia, and the United States. In 1917 he organized the Czechoslavak Legion after receiving permission from Bolshevik leaders. He also went to the United States, where President Wilson recognized him as leader of an independent state on September 3, 1918. On November 14, he was elected "president and liberator" of Czechoslovakia. He was reelected in 1920, 1927, and 1934. In 1935, at the age of eight-five, he retired and handed his responsibilities as president to one of his pupils, Eduard Beneš. Masaryk died in Castle Lana on September 14, 1937.