What argument did Daniel Defoe make in The True-Born Englishman?

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Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe, engraving by M. Van der Gucht, after a portrait by J. Taverner, first half of the 18th century.

In his 1701 poem The True-Born Englishman, Daniel Defoe argued against the xenophobic attacks directed at King William III, who was criticized for being a "foreign" monarch.1

Through this work, Defoe sought to expose the fallacies of racial prejudice by highlighting the mixed and migratory origins of the English people. He effectively challenged the notion of a "pure" English identity, pointing out that the nation was a product of various invading and settling groups throughout history. By doing so, he defended the legitimacy of the king’s rule and promoted a more inclusive understanding of Englishness.12