Bouzov belongs to the state, the appellate court confirmed the dismissal of the order's lawsuit

Olomouc - The Olomouc Regional Court today confirmed the dismissal of the lawsuit by the German Order, which sought the return of the state castle Bouzov. The lawsuit against the National Heritage Institute, which refused to return the castle in May 2014 as part of church restitutions, is not justified according to the court. The same decision was made last August by the Olomouc District Court, but the order appealed against it. According to the order's legal representative Lenka Charvátová, it is not excluded that the order will appeal to the Supreme Court.

According to Judge Ivana Pikalová, the district court conducted the proceedings entirely correctly and the contested judgment is reviewable. All necessary evidence was provided according to the court. The court stated that the return of the castle to the order is not appropriate, as it failed to prove it has a right to the castle under the property settlement law. The evidence gathering was very demanding according to the lawyers of the NPÚ, who represented the state in the dispute; the case file comprises over 4000 pages and it was necessary to go through several archives because of it.

Bouzov is one of the most visited monuments in Moravia, attracting approximately 100,000 visitors each year. The castle was founded in the early 14th century. The Order of the German Knights (since 1929 the German Order) acquired it at the end of the 17th century. The order held the castle until October 1938, when the Nazis confiscated it and transferred it along with other order properties to German administration. The castle was acquired by SS chief Heinrich Himmler, and during the occupation, Bouzov served as the headquarters for an SS assault unit. After the war, Bouzov was confiscated and has been state property since 1945. The German Order has been seeking the castle since 1998.