Further attempts to gain new ground in Paris failed, yet he had become zealous with revolutionary ideas. After the appearance of his "Vertrauten Briefe" (Intimate Letters) in 1792, he was released in 1794 without pay from his position as Court Kapellmeister for being sympathetic to the French Revolution. He lived first in Hamburg, where he released the journal "Frankreich", but from 1794, he lived in Giebichenstein near Halle. In 1796, he was pardoned for his support of the revolution and appointed to the post of the director of the saline (salt mine) in Halle. From there, he often traveled to Berlin to lead the premieres of his compositions.