aw. The treaty was extremely harsh on Russia. The prohibition of trade with England greatly affected the economy of Russia. The Continental System, which Napoleon instituted, prohibited trade with England. Alexander I violated the Treaty of Tilsit by renewing trade with England. Napoleon invaded Russia in an attempt to force Czar Alexander I to abide by the Treaty of Tilsit (Web, Russian Embassy).
             The summer of 1812 was an ideal time for Napoleon to begin an invasion. Russia's economy was weak due to the trade embargo and other internal problems. The infrastructure of Russia was at a technological disadvantage, which would later be more of a burden to Napoleon than an advantage. The artillery and small arms were years behind that of France. The Russian army was a conscription army, meaning that local farmers had to furnish a certain number of surfs for military service, as opposed to a professional, trained army where the government supplies the soldiers with all of their needs. An amazing half-million soldiers had enlisted in Napoleon's Grand Armée (Saglamer, Beginning of the March). This was the largest army gathered for one single invasion. Russia's army was out numbered 3:1 with only one hundred-seventy thousand soldiers. Not only was the Russian army not well trained, they were also ill equipped. Napoleon recognized that it would be difficult and extremely slow for Russia to mobilize her army due to her enormous size and weak infrastructure. If Napoleon invaded now, he knew that he could be well into the Russian territory before meeting any major opposition.
             On June 24, 1812, Napoleon began his fatal Russian campaign. The Grand Armée, led by Napoleon, crossed the Nieman River, into Russia. On the journey to Moscow, Napoleon met virtually no major opposition. The first stop in the campaign was Kovono. Early into the campaign, the Grand Armée was affected by
             ...