After the Battle of Pered, Haynau's army, joined by the Habsburg emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria, crossed the Danube to the southern bank of the river, unnoticed by the Hungarian troops.

They attacked the Hungarian units placed around Győr, Árpás, Marcaltő and Ihász,[a] dividing György Kmety's division from the main troops and forcing them to retreat towards Southern Hungary.

But he still had enough troops to deploy with around 15 000 more soldiers in the battle than Görgei, thanks to the Russian division led by Lieutenant-General Feodor Sergeyevich Panyutyin, misleading the Hungarian commander, thinking that the imperials would remain on the northern bank.

[2] During this time, relations between Lajos Kossuth, the governor of Hungary, the Szemere-government, and its secretary of war, Görgei, worsened, causing a conflict between the political and military leadership.

He convinced the government to accept his plan of gathering all Hungarian forces (except of those of Transylvania and Southern Hungary) around Komárom, in order to achieve numerical superiority.

Failing that they planned to split the Kmety division from the Hungarian VII corps led by Ernő Poeltenberg, and to force them to evacuate the city.

[2] Kmety and other Hungarian commanders conducted some reconnaissance actions in that area, but they weren't able to observe the regrouping of the Austrian troops from the northern to the southern shore of the Danube.

Besides their overwhelming numerical superiority, they had another factor to boost their moral: the presence of the young emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria, at the Austrian headquarters at Mosonmagyaróvár.

The main body of the Austrian army had to advance to Pannonhalma, or, if the IV corps did not defeat the Hungarian troops from Győr, they would march towards Táplán.

Even if the reinforcements had arrived in time, Horváth would have had no chance against the four imperial battalions commanded by Colonel Karl Wolf von Wachentreu.

[2] On 27 June Lieutenant Colonel Hümér Kupa received the news about Kmety's retreat from the Rába line and Poeltenberg's order to take a position at Ménfő.

In order to prevent an encirclement from the direction of Pápa, Poeltenberg sent the Liptay division with 4 infantry battalions, 8 hussar companies, and 10 cannons, to take a position, south from Győr, at Ménfő.

On the left bank of the Rábca river, facing Abda, 2 flèches were built for 4 gun emplacements; a battery of 2 guns and several smaller outworks were installed, mostly on the western edge of the Fácán (Pheasant) Forest to defend the entrance of the Sziget (Island) Suburb; on the western bank of the Rábca, behind the bridge (which was prepared to be dismantled) from Abda, were built 4 flèches for 8 cannon emplacements.

Combined Russian Division: Commander: Lieutenant General Feodor Sergeyevich Panyutyin Total: 11,672 men (32 cavalry companies), 715 horses, 48 cannons.

[21] On the morning of 28 June, at 9 a.m. the battle started at Szemere, where the division led by Lieutenant Colonel Ferenc Liptay was attacked by the Austrian III corps.

Colonel Karl Wolf von Wachentreu sent the 22. kaiserjäger, 2 cavalry companies, and a ½ battery to attack from the front, while another unit with the same strength tried to encircle the Hungarians.

corps too crossed the Rába river at Babót, and arrived at Szemere, while a strong Austrian column, which crossed the Rába at Bodonhely, was marching towards Ménfő, which forced the division led by Lieutenant Colonel Ferenc Liptay to retreat towards Kismegyer,[e] to take a position between Ménfő and Csanak, in order not to be separated in the same way as Kmety was a day before, from the Hungarian forces defending Győr, while the hussars covering the retreat fought continuously with the Austrian chevau-légers.

[19][12] When the Liptay division arrived to Csanak, they encountered there another Austrian column, the Schneider brigade, which, after crossing the Rába at 5:00 a.m., headed, through Szarkavár[f] towards Ménfő.

(or reserve) corps led by Lieutenant-general Ludwig von Wohlgemuth, to cross the Rába near Rábapatona,[19] because of the marshy banks of the river, were unsuccessful.

[g][12] The vanguard of the I. corps, represented by the Bianchi brigade, departed from Barátföld[h] towards Öttevény at 9:00 a.m., where they took a wider formation, on its right wing with 2 battalions, with the duty to assure the connection with the IV.

[12] The Bianchi brigade was spotted by the Hungarian defenders of Abda led by Lieutenant Colonel Sándor Kossuth, who ordered his artillery to shoot at the Austrian.

[12] Seeing this, Poeltenberg gave the order to the defenders of the bridge, to burn it, and retreat to the main fortifications in front of the Vienna-suburb, knowing that Wohlgemuth's troops could attack them from the rear.

[22] At 1:24 in the afternoon, Schlik, as the senior officer, took over the leadership of the Austrian forces between the Rába and Rábca, ordering the Benedek brigade to advance on the right wing, and the I. corps, to deploy for a general assault.

The Bianchi brigade, led by Prince Franz de Paula of Liechtenstein, entered the Sziget suburb of Győr through the Fácános woods by Pinnyéd.

- Gosh, the crook really hit [my thigh, right] where I told him to shoot.Among the imperial troops entering Győr, was Franz Joseph I of Austria, protected by the Benedek brigade.

He ordered Poeltenberg to move, after dismantling the Promenade bridge, to march over to the "Szőllőfürt" (Bunch of Grapes) tavern from Gönyű[22][k] with the infantry and artillery of the right wing.

At that moment the danger appeared in a so huge shape, and the subofficers which were present there, were so insufficient, that I decided to spare no effort in order to make possible and assure the simple, unperturbed retreat of the exhausted infantry by personally leading the attack of all the cavalry which was available [in that moment], forcing them to fight with all the force which they had... And then I opened my snuff box, broke down my wife's daguerreotype framed under the glass, and wiped it down from the sheet.

A military commander who selfishly pursues ambitious goals, would not put himself in front of such dangerous, but obscure rearguard fights, in which the achievable public glory is determined by the lesser involvement in them.

The imperial main commander, Julius von Haynau, and his chief of general staff, Colonel Wilhelm Ramming put up a good performance surprising the Hungarian defense of Győr.

The Austrian commander started a new attack on 2 July, in order to force Görgei's troops to retreat to the fortress, opening his road to Budapest.