the.com/rearguard
the last people out the door, fighting so everyone else can leave first.
means a detachment positioned behind a retreating or marching force to protect it from attack from behind.
from from middle french arriere-garde, arriere meaning behind and garde meaning guard, entering english around the 15th century through military campaigns where someone always had to walk backwards while everyone else ran.
job descriptiondelay the enemy, not defeat them
casualty ratehistorically the most dangerous position in retreat
modern usenow also means defensive politics, not just soldiers
opposite unitvanguard leads, rearguard bleeds
for instance
dunkirk 1940 — french rearguard held the perimeter so 338,000 could evacuate
battle of roncevaux — 778 ad, charlemagne's rearguard under roland wiped out in the pyrenees
retreat from kabul — 1842, british rearguard action failed, only one man reached jalalabad
rearguard action politics — phrase now used for last-ditch defenses of dying policies