He is most famous for his novel Robinson Crusoe , published in , which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translations. Intellectuals and political leaders paid attention to his fresh ideas and sometimes consulted him. Defoe was a prolific and versatile writer, producing more than three hundred works [ 4 ] βbooks, pamphlets, and journalsβon diverse topics, including politics, crime, religion, marriage, psychology and the supernatural.
He was also a pioneer of business journalism [ 5 ] and economic journalism. In Defoe's early childhood, he lived through several significant historical events: in , seventy thousand were killed by the Great Plague of London , and the next year, the Great Fire of London left only Defoe's and two other houses standing in his neighbourhood.
His mother, Alice, had died by the time he was about ten. Defoe was educated at the Rev. Defoe entered the world of business as a general merchant, dealing at different times in hosiery, general woollen goods, and wine. His ambitions were great and he was able to buy a country estate and a ship as well as civets to make perfume , though he was rarely out of debt.
Given his debts and political difficulties, the marriage may have been troubled, but it lasted 47 years and produced eight children. Queen Mary and her husband William III were jointly crowned in , and Defoe became one of William's close allies and a secret agent.
He died with little wealth and evidently embroiled in lawsuits with the royal treasury. Following his release from debtors' prison , he probably travelled in Europe and Scotland, [ 24 ] and it may have been at this time that he traded wine to Cadiz , Porto and Lisbon.
