"It would be foolish to go any further. Here we must halt and regain our strength."
--Napoleon Bonaparte 1812The trip from Vilna to Vitebsk claimed another 8000 horses and the cattle had a very hard time keeping up with the marching army. Several carriages were abandoned.
Russians on the otherhand did not seem to be suffering from the conditions. No dead horses, or abandoned carriages were found by the roadsides. Russians intended to leave nothing for the enemy so they had raid through the country destroying all the villages and all sources of resources. The peasants were just as afraid of the Russian army as they were of the French army.
All through this march Napoleon seemed to make ambitious assumptions about the army's ability to march on without proper food and shelter. He kept on promising the soldiers that they would get a good rest at Vitebsk.
Napoleon entered Vitebsk on July 29 1812. There was still no indication of the Russian army which was constantly retreating deeper into Russian land. Conditions in Vitebsk were really dire. There was a clear shortage of medical supplies and doctors and people with lost limbs dies first.
Napoleon also seemed to show signs of psychological unbalance. He gave orders which were impossible to execute under the current conditions.