With the end of the Battle of Kirk Kilisse battle the Bulgarian high command chose to rest its forces instead of vigorously pursuing the retreating Ottomans. The Ottomans used the time to establish a new defensive line. By the time the Bulgarian Third and First armies resumed their advance their opponents were thoroughly entrenched and reinforced. When the Battle of Lule Burgas began the Bulgarians were forced to engage in a direct frontal assault with around 108,000 riflemen against the 126,000 riflemen of the Ottomans. The Third Army was to bear the brunt of the fighting as the First Army was forced to leave substantial forces to guard its rear and right flank in the direction of Adrianople. Despite their numerical superiority the Ottoman armies were routed after a five-day battle. The nature of the battle however also caused heavy casualties to the Bulgarians, especially in the ranks of the heavily engaged Third Army which had some 15,561 men killed or wounded and 2,911 missing from its ranks. The losses and exhaustion of the soldiers again forced the Bulgarian command to order a couple of days rest.