After its successful actions on the 26th, the 10th Cavalry Division bivouacked on the battlefield – keeping its men and horses tightly packed as in a peacetime maneuver, with few guards set about its perimeter. Cossack scouts discovered the camps, and returned with their friends in the early morning hours.

The Cossacks caught the Budapest-based division totally by surprise, scattering the hussars and inflicting serious losses. The panic infected the neighboring 6th Cavalry Division as well; 10th Cavalry Division would be out of action for the coming day’s fighting while 6th Cavalry Division only recovered in the late afternoon. Though the Austrian cavalry had only limited firepower, Fourth Army had counted on them to cover the flanks of the planned advance and their early-morning rout would have serious consequences as the battle developed.