Congressional Career
Lovell served effectively in the Congress during the six years that were critical to the American Revolution. He was particularly important as a long term member of the Committee of Foreign Correspondence and that of Secret Correspondence. He signed the Articles of Confederation, endorsing them for Massachusetts on July 9, 1778.
In one area his performance was controversial. In 1776 and 1777, there was a growing struggle for influence and command in the Continental Army. Lovell became a supporter of Horatio Gates in his lobbying quest for command. He encouraged Gates in reporting directly to Congress, in effect going over Washington's head. This reached its peak when Gates was given command of the Northern Department, replacing Philip Schuyler in the summer of 1777.
A womanizer in Philadelphia, Lovell was also a frequent correspondent with both John and Abigail Adams. In his correspondence to Abigail he flirted wondering what John was doing with his private time in France. He also used John's pet name of Portia in his correspondence.
Read more about this topic: James Lovell (Continental Congress)
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