The heiress of the Walderode family will acquire the furnishings of the Hrubý Rohozec castle, the NPÚ will not appeal

Semily - The furnishings of the state castle Hrubý Rohozec in Turnov belong to Johanna Kammerlander, the heir of the Walderode family. This was decided today by the district court in Semily. The verdict is not yet final. The National Heritage Institute (NPÚ) will not appeal, said Lucie Bidlasová, regional spokesperson for NPÚ, to ČTK. According to her, they expect to reach an agreement with the heir of the family. Kammerlander's legal representative, Roman Heyduk, stated that the heir does not intend to dispose of the castle's furnishings in any way. The collections will remain in the castle, he said.

"Considering that the rescue and protection of monuments is absolutely key and fundamental for NPÚ, it was decided, in the context of Dr. Kammerlander's generous promise to donate the property – and its furnishings - to the state, that NPÚ would not continue the court dispute and would fully accept the issued verdict," said Bidlasová.

Given the scope of this restitution case, the court only addressed the furnishings of the castle today. It did not rule on the building, which is a national cultural monument. The widow of Karl des Fours Walderode is to receive over 5,000 items from the castle's furnishings, specifically furniture, paintings, weapons, and candlesticks. The court denied the release of several hundred other items because they could not be located.

Kammerlander's legal representative was satisfied with the court's decision. "The verdict was essentially to be expected, as the judge already indicated that he considers the claim justified. And after almost 34 years of this dragging case, at least one part is concluded," Heyduk told reporters.

He also stated that Kammerlander does not intend to dispose of the furnishings of the castle in any way. "It is not yet final, but nothing will change regarding the current state. The collections will remain in the castle, and the castle will stay in Turnov," said Heyduk. He also confirmed that the heir is considering donating the castle to the state in the event of a court victory. "She is seriously considering this, given that a lot has been invested in the castle by the Czech Republic, that she would donate this castle to the Czech Republic," he said. However, according to him, she would like to keep the collections in her ownership. "The collections would remain in the castle but would be owned by Ms. Kammerlander based on a loan agreement," added Heyduk.

The release of the castle's furnishings is part of an extensive restitution case that has lasted three decades. The noble family has been seeking the return of their property since 1992, mostly unsuccessfully so far. The family dispute involves not only the castle, which is a national cultural monument, but also forests and land in Semily, Jablonec, and Liberec. They have so far acquired a quarter of a hectare of municipal forest near Žďárek in Liberec.

The state confiscated the castle and estate in Turnov and the surrounding area from the noble family after World War II based on the Beneš decrees, at a time when Walderode was considered German. In 1947, the authorities restored his Czechoslovak citizenship; after emigration following the communist coup in February 1948, it was taken away again and was only regained after the regime change in 1992. He then applied for the return of his billion-dollar property, but he did not live to see the verdict. Courts spent years resolving whether his claim was justified. Only two years ago, the Constitutional Court presumably definitively decided that it is necessary to proceed according to the authorities' decision on the restoration of Czechoslovak citizenship from 1947. This means meeting the basic condition for the issuance of property, which was confirmed today by Semily judge Michal Polák.

"The court proceeded from the fact that in 1947, Czechoslovak citizenship was restored to Dr. Walderode. And in that decision, it is also included the conclusion that Mr. Walderode did not commit any offense against the Czechoslovak state. The authorities at the time had all the necessary information to make a proper decision, and the court now has no reason to deviate from this decision,” Polák told reporters.

According to lawyer Tomáš Nahodil, who specializes in constitutional and administrative law, aside from the dispute over the interior furnishings of the Opočno castle in the Rychnov area, this is one of the longest restitution legal cases in the Czech Republic. "Similar to the restitution case of the furnishings of the Opočno castle, in which a breakthrough came only after the Constitutional Court ruling issued six years ago, and that only as a result of a favorable ruling from the European Court of Human Rights, the recent decision of the Constitutional Court also had an impact on the release of the interior furnishings of the Hrubý Rohozec castle," Nahodil stated to ČTK.