At the end of 1848, General Anton Freiherr von Puchner, who commanded the Austrian troops in Transylvania, had no hope of getting support from Vienna against the rebellious Hungarians and turned for help to the commander of the Russian corps that occupied the Danube principalities, General Alexander von Lüders. With the permission of Tsar Nicholas I, on 31 January 1849, two Russian detachments under command of Major General Engelhardt and Colonel Skariatin entered Transylvania and took over the defense of Brașov and Sibiu from the Imperial troops. On 4 February, between Szászhermány and Szentpéter, they defeated rebel forces under Sándor Gál. But due to Józef Bem's victories over the Austrian Army, he was forced to evacuate Brasov on 19 March. In mid-July, he crushed a Hungarian detachment in Făgăraș. He distinguished himself in the Battle of Segesvár, where he led General Lüders' defensive forces.