The establishment of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw in 1807 had
ushered in a time big with chances for a capable man, and we may
be sure that a young husband and father, no doubt already on the
look-out for some more lucrative and independent employment, was
determined not to miss them. Few peaceful revolutions, if any,
can compare in thoroughness with the one that then took place in
Poland; a new sovereign ascended the throne, two differently-
constituted representative bodies superseded the old Senate and
Diet, the French code of laws was introduced, the army and civil
service underwent a complete re-organisation, public instruction
obtained a long-needed attention, and so forth. To give an idea
of the extent of the improvement effected in matters of
education, it is enough to mention that the number of schools
rose from 140 to 634, and that a commission was formed for the
publication of suitable books of instruction in the Polish
language. Nicholas Chopin's hopes were not frustrated; for on
October 1, 1810, he was appointed professor of the French
language at the newly-founded Lyceum in Warsaw, and a little more
than a year after, on January 1, 1812, to a similar post at the
School of Artillery and Engineering.

The exact date when Nicholas Chopin and his family settled in
Warsaw is not known, nor is it of any consequence. We may,
however, safely assume that about this time little Frederick was
an inhabitant of the Polish metropolis. During the first years of
his life the parents may have lived in somewhat straitened
circumstances. The salary of the professorship, even if regularly
paid, would hardly suffice for a family to live comfortably, and
the time was unfavourable for gaining much by private tuition. M.