Fedor Hodža (4 November 1912, in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

– 17 September 1968, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

) was a Slovak politician and lawyer, the son of

Milan Hodža Milan Hodža (1 February 1878 – 27 June 1944) was a Slovak politician and journalist, serving from 1935 to 1938 as the prime minister of Czechoslovakia. As a proponent of regional integration, he was known for his attempts to establish a demo ...

. He was a graduate of the Faculty of Law of the

Charles University Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest universities in the world in conti ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. He worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Prague (1938 – 1939). During the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(more precisely 1938 – 1945) he lived in

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and the UK, where he was Minister of Foreign Affairs and Agriculture of the

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak Repu ...

government in exile from 1940 to 1945. He participated, along with his father, in the creation of the

Slovak National Council The Slovak National Council (, SNR) was an organisation that was formed at various times in the 19th and 20th centuries to act as the highest representative of the Slovak nation. It originated in the mid-19th century as a focus for Slovak nationali ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, which was supposed to be an opposition body to the exile policy of

Edvard Beneš Edvard Beneš (; 28 May 1884 – 3 September 1948) was a Czech politician and statesman who served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1935 to 1938, and again from 1939 to 1948. During the first six years of his second stint, he led the Czec ...

. After his father had left for the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

, Fedor established close relationships with Beneš and even became a member of the Czechoslovak pseudo-parliament in exile ("State Council") in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1944. In 1945, he was a member of the

. After World War II, from 1945 to 1948, he was a member of the Constituent National Assembly of Czechoslovakia and Secretary General of the Democratic Party. In 1948, when the

communists Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...

took power in Czechoslovakia, he emigrated to the U.S. There, as a member of the Council for a Free Czecho-Slovakia and of the Permanent Council of Slovak Democratic Exiles, he tried to achieve a re-establishment of democracy in Czechoslovakia, ruled by communists at that time. He died on 17 September 1968 in New York City.

References

1912 births 1968 deaths Politicians from Budapest People from the Kingdom of Hungary Republican Party of Farmers and Peasants politicians Democratic Party (Slovakia, 1944) politicians Government ministers of Czechoslovakia Members of the Interim National Assembly of Czechoslovakia Members of the Constituent National Assembly of Czechoslovakia Recipients of the Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk Czechoslovak emigrants to the United States Charles University alumni {{Slovakia-politician-stub