The Constitutional Court dismissed the complaint of the archbishopric, so the Květná zahrada in Kroměříž remains with the state

Brno/Olomouc/Praha – The Constitutional Court (ÚS) dismissed the complaint of the Archdiocese of Olomouc in the dispute over the Květná Garden in Kroměříž. The monument listed on the UNESCO World Heritage list remains the property of the state. The archdiocese unsuccessfully requested its return in church restitution. The National Heritage Institute (NPÚ), which manages the Květná Garden, welcomed the court's decision. According to spokesperson Jiří Gračka, the archdiocese respects the court's findings, although it considers the separation of the two Kroměříž gardens unfortunate. According to the constitutional judges, the garden can operate independently and is not an annex of the archbishop's castle and the Podzámecká Garden.

"We certainly welcome this decision; the court ruled in accordance with the arguments we presented," NPÚ spokesperson Jana Hartmanová told ČTK today.

According to the archdiocese's lawyer Jakub Kříž, today's finding ends the "journey" of the archdiocese associated with the effort to clarify the ownership of the Květná Garden. "After 350 years of existence of the Kroměříž complex, the Květná and Podzámecká gardens have been separated, and they will continue to operate independently, at least from a legal standpoint. From a heritage perspective, this is an unfortunate consequence of the state's actions," said Kříž.

"The ÚS is the highest legal authority in the country. And even though we may not agree with some of its findings, we always respect them. We still believe that the unnatural separation of the two Kroměříž gardens is unfortunate," said spokesperson Gračka.

In its unsuccessful lawsuit, the archdiocese argued that the garden forms a functional whole with the Kroměříž castle and the Podzámecká Garden, which the church acquired in a property settlement in 2015. However, according to the ruling, the Květná Garden can function independently, and its restoration to the church does not concern it.

According to reporter Jan Filip, the constitutional judges accepted the courts' view that there is no economic-technical connection between the Květná Garden and the castle complex, thus the garden can operate independently.

"The conclusion of the courts, namely that this is, from an economic-technical standpoint, a separate matter, i.e., that it is not an accessory to the archbishop's castle and the Podzámecká Garden, is correct, constitutionally conforming, and therefore we dismissed the case," said reporter judge Jan Filip to journalists.

"The Květná Garden is a separate (closed) collection of land and the buildings located on it (which may have their own accessories) that not only does not adjoin the land on which the castle building stands but is located at a distant site and can be used as a park with gardening continually and independently, not only and continually with the main thing within their economic designation," states the finding.

According to the NPÚ, the Květná Garden is among the most significant garden works on a global scale. It was built by Olomouc Bishop Karl von Liechtenstein-Kastelkorn in the second half of the 17th century. Its design was crafted by Italian architects.