Rudolf Beran (28 December 1887 – 23 April 1954) was a Czechoslovak politician who served as prime minister of the country before its occupation by Nazi Germany and shortly thereafter, before it was declared a protectorate.

He also subjected the press to tough censorship, but he presided over granting the Slovaks and Ruthenians' longstanding demands for autonomy.

None of the measures was enough to prevent Slovakia from seceding on 14 March, or Germany from occupying the remainder of the country a day later.

[1] After the war, Beran was arrested as a collaborator by the Communist authorities, and in a manipulated political trial was sentenced to twenty years in prison.

Literature: KULÍŠEK, Vítězslav, Politika druhé republiky (1938–1939): aneb první kolaps československé demokracie, Brno 2020, ISBN 978-80-270-7832-5