Milan Rastislav Štefánik, Slovak astronomer, general, and politician (d. 1919)
Milan Rastislav Štefánik (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈmilan ˈrascislaw ˈʂcefaːɲik] (listen); 21 July 1880 – 4 May 1919) was a Slovak politician, diplomat, aviator and astronomer. During World War I, he served at the same time as a general in the French Army and as Minister of War for Czechoslovakia. As one of the leading members of the Czechoslovak National Council (the resistance government), he contributed decisively to the cause of Czechoslovak sovereignty, since the status of Czech- and Slovak-populated territories was one of those in question until shortly before the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, in 1918.
His personal motto was "To Believe, To Love, To Work" (Veriť, milovať, pracovať).