Fonds 20-001 - Jozef A. Mikuš fonds

Dr. Jozef August Mikuš was born on July 3, 1909, in the village of Krivá, Orava county, Slovakia. From 1929, he studied law at the University of Dijon and at Comenius University in Bratislava where he graduated with a J.D. degree in 1934. He then joined the diplomatic service of the first Czechoslovak Republic. During the Slovak Republic (1939-1945), he served as Chargé d’affaires in Spain, and in 1944 became Chief of Diplomatic Protocol at the Slovak National Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Between 1945 and 1948, he served as an advisor to the Slovak National Council in Bratislava. During that time, he was imprisoned three times. In March 1948, he fled Czechoslovakia with his wife Renée and their daughter Isabelle. Between 1948 and 1952, he lived in Paris and was a member of the Slovak National Council Abroad. In December 1951, he left Europe for the United States and settled with his family in Washington, D.C. Between 1952 and 1958, Dr. Mikuš was a lobbyist for the Slovak League of America in Washington, D.C. Between 1959 to 1961, he taught History at St. John’s University in Jamaica, N.Y. He also worked as press correspondent (1952-1957), and as legal librarian (1965). He served as a consultant and translator for the State Department (1957-1959, 1961-1965), In 1966, he obtained his Master Degree in Comparative Law from the George Washington University. From 1967 up until his retirement in 1974, he taught Political Science and History at Georgian Court College in Lakewood, New Jersey.
In 1970, Dr. Mikuš was a co-founder of the Slovak World Congress. Throughout his career, he was an active member of numerous other professional, political, and nationalist organizations on which he served in many capacities.
Dr. Mikuš has been a very prolific writer throughout his long career as a diplomat, a jurist, a lobbyist, a professor, and a political activist. He has published a dozen books, many pamphlets and booklets. He has contributed to at least three books published in collaboration with other authors, and has produced an impressive number of articles in learned journals, Slovak periodicals and American newspapers. As a recognized authority in the many fields of History, in Political Science, and in issues of International Law, Dr. Mikuš conducted many seminars and delivered numerous conferences. His contribution has been significant.
In 1995-1996, Dr. Mikuš left the United States. After a short stay in France, he returned to his native Slovakia. He passed away in 2005.