In the spring of 1812, Napoleon an army of six hundred thousand men on the borders of Russia. The soldiers were well trained, , and well equipped. Shortly afterwards, Napoleon’s army crossed the Neman River into Russia. In August, the French and Russian armies at Smolensk, in a battle that left over ten thousand dead on each side. Napoleon of pressing on to Moscow, 448 kilometers away. On September 7, 1812, the French and Russian armies met in fierce battle at Borodino, 112 kilometers west of Moscow. Again, the Russian army retreated to safety. Napoleon had a clear path to Moscow, but the of the city became an empty victory. Napoleon soon realized he could not feed, clothe, and his army in Moscow during the winter. In October 1812, he ordered his Grand Army to retreat from Moscow. At the Berezina River, the Russians nearly trapped the retreating French by burning the bridges over the river. But Napoleon, by a stroke of luck, was able to build two new bridges. Thousands of French soldiers escaped, but at the cost of fifty thousand dead. Once across the Berezina, the survivors limped toward Vilna.