“We’ve been naked on this ground since 1905,” Petra Hoffmann, the treasurer of the club, which has around 400 members, told Bild newspaper.

“We refuse to display these rules. On our site we decide what goes.”

The German Swimming Society said the row was the result of a mix-up, and the local council had sent out a standard set of rules it prepared for public swimming pools.

“Rule 9 of our regulations is clearly not suitable for nudist bathing areas,” Joachim Heuser, a spokesman for the Swimming Society, said.

Local authorities have said they understand the nudists’ concerns but there was no other location available for the refugee shelter.

“We need the shelter. There is no other central facility for asylum-seekers in the entire county,” Helena Musal, a spokesman for the council, said.