The Swedish king had, ever since the Crossing of the Düna and the conquest of Courland earlier that year,[1] contemplated actions against the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth to have Augustus II, whom Charles considered as too unpredictable, dethroned.

Charles answered by assembling an additional 100 dragoons and 400 foot guards, merged the contingents together and rode out on December 12 — with only a handful of followers and without noticing the headquarters — to personally lead the combined forces in Samogitia and destroy the troubling army under Grzegorz.

[12] Just before midnight, at 23:00,[10] Grzegorz launched a surprise attack on the sleeping Swedes; between 1,000[13] and 2,000[14] of his cavalry rushed into the town, uncontested, and caused panic by killing Swedish horses and igniting the houses.

[9] The battle shifted tides as more Swedish troops mobilized and the Lithuanians had, after an hourly long struggle, been defeated;[15] they were chased for about five kilometers before the fighting stopped.

[19] Charles once again forced Grzegorz on the run at Kaunas, towards Vilnius, after which he left a 1,300 man strong garrison under Hummerhielm in the town, before heading back towards the main army in Courland — 280 km (174 mi) away — with only a few companions.

[note 6][23] Hummerhielm's troops remained quite active despite being heavily outnumbered,[22] with an insufficient amount of provisions, forage and ammunition; on March 18, he beat 12 banners of the Wiśniowiecki family — another enemy to the Sapieha's — at Jieznas, and there seized ten metal cannons, of which he could only bring back four to Kaunas.

[26] This forced Grzegorz party to retreat to the rich-wooded areas in the northeastern Lithuania, from where he would keep harassing the Swedes who were left behind to hold Courland.