James Warren was the President of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress

Massachusetts Provincial Congress

The Massachusetts Provincial Congress was a provisional government created in the Province of Massachusetts Bay early in the American Revolution....

 and a Paymaster General of the Continental Army

Continental Army

The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...

 during the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

, among other positions. He was born, and died, in Plymouth, Massachusetts. He was not related to Joseph Warren

Joseph Warren

Dr. Joseph Warren was an American doctor who played a leading role in American Patriot organizations in Boston in early days of the American Revolution, eventually serving as president of the revolutionary Massachusetts Provincial Congress...

 and John Warren

John Warren (surgeon)

John Warren was a Continental Army surgeon during the American Revolutionary War, founder of the Harvard Medical School and the younger brother of Joseph Warren.-Early life:...

, two other notable Warrens from Massachusetts during the Revolution with which he is sometimes confused because of their similar names and roles.

Warren graduated from Harvard in 1745, and in 1754 married his second cousin Mercy Otis Warren

Mercy Otis Warren

Mercy Otis Warren was a political writer and propagandist of the American Revolution. In the eighteenth century, topics such as politics and war were thought to be the province of men. Few women had the education or training to write about these subjects. Warren was the exception...

, a historian and playwright. He was a descendant of Mayflower

Mayflower

The Mayflower was the ship that transported the English Separatists, better known as the Pilgrims, from a site near the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Massachusetts, , in 1620...

 passengers Richard Warren

Richard Warren

Richard Warren was a passenger on the Mayflower in 1620. He settled in Plymouth Colony and was among ten passengers of the Mayflower landing party with Myles Standish at Cape Cod on November 11, 1620...

 and Edward Doty

Edward Doty

Edward Doty was a Mayflower passenger, a signer of the Mayflower Compact, and a permanent settler of Plymouth Colony. His surname sometimes appears as Doten, Dotey, or Day....

; his wife Mercy was also descended from Edward Doty. He and Mercy had five sons. During the time of the Revolution, she hosted political meetings in her home, and in 1772, she published her play, The Adulateur. After the war, in 1790, Mrs. Warren published a volume of poetry in her name. In 1805, she wrote History of the American Revolution. She died in Plymouth in 1814.

Warren was more active in the early days of the Revolution than in the war itself. He was a member of the Sons of Liberty

Sons of Liberty

The Sons of Liberty were a political group made up of American patriots that originated in the pre-independence North American British colonies. The group was formed to protect the rights of the colonists from the usurpations by the British government after 1766...

, and he fought in the Battle of Bunker Hill

Battle of Bunker Hill

The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War...

 alongside Mercy's brother James Otis, Jr.

James Otis, Jr.

James Otis, Jr. was a lawyer in colonial Massachusetts, a member of the Massachusetts provincial assembly, and an early advocate of the political views that led to the American Revolution. The phrase "Taxation without Representation is Tyranny" is usually attributed to him...

. He was commissioned a general in the Massachusetts militia, but because he refused to serve under Continental Army

Continental Army

The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...

 officers of lesser rank, he took no part in the war after the action moved away from Boston.

James Warren is buried on Burial Hill

Burial Hill

Burial Hill is a hill containing a historic cemetery in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The burial ground is the burial site of several Pilgrims. The cemetery was founded in the 17th century and is located off Leyden Street, the first street in Plymouth.-History:The first Pilgrim burial ground was on...

 in Plymouth, Massachusetts.