August von Mackensen's XVII Corps began to crumble on the morning of August 26th, with some troops refusing to move forward without rest. On the German side, the middle-aged reservists of! Reserve Corps marched to the sound of the guns to rescue the regulars. On the Russian side, the 4th Division did not send out reconnaissance patrols ahead of its advance because, its chief of staff explained later, it had received no orders to do so.

Confused fighting broke out as the two forces stumbled into one another, and the Russians at first had the better of it. But the Germans pressed forward, with their artillery - unable to conduct indirect fire due to a lack of training among the Landsturm gunners fighting with them in the front lines. As dusk fell their officers led them in a final mass bayonet charge that broke the Russians and sent all of VI Corps into a disorganized retreat.