About 4,000 mercenaries, hired by Teutonic Knights, arrived in Gdańsk. Their goal was to attack Cuiavia and capture Bydgoszcz. After gathering the militia, Polish king Władysław Jagiełło sent about 2,000 armed men to stop the enemy. Koronowo was a strategic place. The shortest route from Tuchola to Bydgoszcz passed through here. The Poles seized the stronghold, so the Teutonic Knights, surprised by the Polish readiness to fight, began to retreat.
Horse archers gave chase. Seeing that it would be impossible to avoid a fight, the Teutonic troops stopped on a hill located ap. 7 kilometers from Koronowo, where they prepared to end the battle with one, decisive attack. But the battle turned out to be much more fierce and the Poles managed to capture the Teutonic banner.