The XIIth Games, of 1940, were originally awarded to Tokyo and then Helsinki, but were eventually cancelled after the outbreak of World War Two. Optimistically, the International Olympic Committee chose London to host the XIIIth Games in 1944, only to see them cancelled again.
With the war finally over a postal vote of IOC members again selected London to host the Olympics. Six years of war had left Britain with rationing of food and clothing, and housing was in short supply, such that the 1948 celebrations became known as the 'Austerity Games'.
