During the ninth century, Iona’s ancient role as the administrative and jurisdictional center of a united, pan-Gaelic familia Iae was brought to an end when it was superseded in Ireland by Kells and in what was to become known as Alba by Dunkeld. This process, which effectively created two distinct Columban churches, has traditionally been viewed as a direct consequence of the disruptive, sometimes destructive, presence of Scandinavian raiders in the Irish Sea and around the western isles. It has long been presumed that their depredations, which gained especial attention from annalists and chroniclers when a monastery was pillaged, “drove a wedge” between Ireland and northern Britain and so established a de facto schism in both secular and ecclesiastical Gaelic society. However, as John Bannerman has highlighted, the effect of the Scandinavian incursions on the Columban Church and its eventual dichotomy has been exaggerated, with the period of actual raiding relatively short-lived.

The rise of the Anglo-German antagonism before the First World War has become a commonplace in the historical literature. It has also been argued that the growth in the antagonism was accompanied by a rise in negativity in the British historiography’s treatment of Germany before 1914. Manfred Messerschmidt, for instance, has contended that British historical writings in the pre-1914 period tended to move in parallel with political trends—that is, that the British historians’ views of Germany assumed greater hostility as diplomatic tensions between the British and German governments escalated. According to Messerschmidt, a turning point can be detected in the 1894-1908 period when British historical works began to treat Germany in increasingly negative terms. Panikos Panayi, meanwhile, claims that negative images of Germany had become dominant in the British history books before 1914. As he writes: “In academic study, we can point to history where the focus upon the early history of England and the invasion of the Angles and Saxons died away as an area of interest, replaced by the history of modern Germany viewed as a threat.” As these views suggest, anti-Germanism was already firmly entrenched in the British historical profession before the start of the First World War in August 1914.