Britain and the Olympic Games, 1908-1920: Perspectives on Participation and Identity

Britain and the Olympic Games, 1908-1920 focuses upon British perspectives towards the Olympic Games during a period of three Olympic Games; London 1908, Stockholm 1912 and Antwerp 1920, along with the build up to the abandoned Berlin 1916 Olympics. The majority of the sources examined come from the print media and present the views from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales in a desire to illustrate the identities that make up Britain, both sporting and otherwise during this period. Also investigated are British views upon Germany which, through the growing military rivalry, had an impact upon her national identity during this period, and this is examined from a sporting perspective.