The 1908 Summer Olympics (the Games of the IV Olympiad) were the fifth modern Olympic Games and the third to be hosted outside of Athens, Greece. The International Olympic Committee considers them the fourth Olympic Games, discounting the intercalated 1906 Summer Olympics. The 1908 Olympic Games were scheduled to take place in Rome, but the eruption of Mount Vesuvius on 7 April 1906 required the Italian government to redirect funds away from the Olympics. The events took place between 27 April 1908 and 31 October 1908, with 22 nations participating in 110 events. The British team easily topped the unofficial medal count, finishing with three times as many medals as the second-place United States.