However the Swedish units managed to enter Daugavgrīva before Chodkiewicz's arrival and as a result the hetman turned back and moved towards Pärnu, hoping to take the defenders there under command of Daniel von Wochen by surprise.

Chodkiewicz's forces arrived on February 28, 1609 but when his troops tried to creep up to the city's walls unnoticed the Swedish garrison fired their cannons which established that a surprise attack was not going to work.

Chodkiewicz then, feigning a withdrawal, hid his forces in nearby woods forbidding his soldiers to even light camp fires, despite the freezing cold of the Estonian winter.

After capturing the city, Chodkiewicz left 200 infantry in Pärnu, and began a march towards Riga (then in Polish hands) which was threatened with a siege by the Swedes.

Charles IX of Sweden later accused Daniel von Wochen of collaborating with the Poles, which he believed was the reason for the surrender.