A storied piece of Czech land could once again be in the hands of Austrian nobility, thanks to a fresh legal battle over the sprawling estate in Central Bohemia.

Konopiště Castle made headlines around the world in 1914 after its owner, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, was assassinated along with his wife during a state visit to Sarajevo. Ferdinand was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his death sparked World War I, changing the face of Europe forever.

After the assassinations and throughout the war, the castle remained in family hands and the couple's three orphaned children — Sophie, Maximilian and Ernst — continued to live there until 1921, when the estate and all its contents were confiscated by the Czechoslovak government.

In the years since, the state-owned castle 50 kilometers (31 miles) southeast of Prague has become a national landmark, a popular spot for Czechs and tourists alike.

Now, two generations later, the family wants it back.

On Nov. 28, Sophie von Hohenburg, Ferdinand's Luxembourg-born great-granddaughter, filed a legal claim with the district court in Benešov, Central Bohemia. Returning the castle to her family is a matter of justice, Hohenburg said through her attorney.

"My client's step is based ... on her duty to point out and name injustices done," Jaroslav Brož said. "Now that we are a part of the European Union, we focus on new values, including the protection of ownership rights. The Czech state cannot ignore this issue."

Legal wrangling

Though restitution claims as old as this one rarely succeed, the Hohenburg case may not be as easy to dismiss as Czechs hope, legal experts say.

"It's a complicated issue. It all depends on how the case will be prepared and presented," said restitution lawyer Petr Tomanec. "They could succeed if their claim is based on ownership rights. If they present a restitution case, then it will be rejected."

Under current Czech law, legal claims for restitution are valid only if the property in question was seized between Feb. 25, 1948, and Jan. 1, 1990, Tomanec said.

Because some 85 years have passed since the confiscation of Konopiště, the courts would throw out a claim based on the principle of restitution, he said. But a case based on the issue of ownership is less easily dismissed.

Brož said his client's case is based on this principle.

"We've proposed to the Constitutional Court to rule that at the time of his death, [Ferdinand's eldest son] Maximilian Hohenburg was an Austrian citizen and the rightful owner of Konopiště," he said.

A historical quibble over titles makes this issue more complex, said historian Jan Galandauer.

In 1900, Ferdinand was only allowed to marry Žofie Chotková, who was from a Bohemian family of much lower social standing, on the condition that their offspring would revoke their right to the Habsburg name. Instead, said Galandauer, they were given the name of Hohenburg.

Because the Hohenburgs were not technically members of the Habsburg nobility, the Czechoslovak state had no authority to confiscate their property, Brož said.

"In Austria, Hohenburg property was not confiscated, as Hohenburgs were not considered members of the House of Habsburg," said Galandauer. "However, the Czechoslovak Parliament decided otherwise in 1921."

The decision was a political one fuelled by popular anti-Habsburg sentiment, Galandauer said.

"It would be highly problematic to try and change the now 85-year-old decision. However, lawyers always come up with something. After all, just about anything can be questioned."

If this legal avenue fails, the family will consider moving the fight to other courts, Brož said.

"If the district court rejects the case, then we have to decide whether to move to higher courts, step by step, or eventually turn to an international court of justice," he said.

A noble's life

Ferdinand and his family had lived a life of secluded luxury at the castle with its 5,900-hectare (14,600-acre) grounds.

Ferdinand bought the castle in 1887, and spent years transforming it into the Baroque-style mansion worthy of an emperor that it is today, Galandauer said.

"Konopiště as it looks now is entirely the work of Franz Ferdinand. He conducted and carried out all the reconstruction. All was being prepared for the day he would succeed" the throne, he said.

In those days, the castle was largely inaccessible: The archduke was a notoriously private man, and allowed few visitors onto the grounds. Since Konopiště came into state hands, visitors have flocked to the estate — so many that management had to curb the number of tours to prevent damage to the interior, said caretaker Marie Krejčová. This year the castle welcomed 170,000 visitors, down from a peak of 300,000 in the 1990s, she said.

That shouldn't change. "It could take years before there are any major developments on the issue, if any at all," said Vojtěch Láska, director of the National Heritage Office in Central Bohemia.

In an interview with the daily Mladá fronta Dnes, Hohenburg said that if the castle were returned to the family, she would continue to keep it open to the public.