Rearguard is ... The meaning of the rearguard units in the army and navy

Many words from the placer of military terms, found in world military literature, have become obscure to the modern reader. Among these terms - and the word "rear guard". This concept is often found in the literature, and is used both in the literal and figurative sense.

The emergence of the word

The word came from the French language, is a tracing expression of arrière-garde, which means "protection of the rear." The rear guard is a certain part of the troops intended to guard the front, strike units of the army.

Duties of the rearguard

In offensive operations, the role of the rear guard is likely to be a police officer. For the most part, their duty is to stop the actions of looters, to catch deserters, to ensure order in the rear of the column.

A completely different understanding of what a rearguard is, is formed in the enumeration of the functions of this part of the troops in defensive operations and in retreat after a lost battle. At the same time, the main duties of the rearguard units were as follows:

• Ensure consistent and orderly movement of troops;
• To restrain the enemy offensive;
• To suppress enemy attacks in the direction of the flanks;
• To carry out reconnaissance with the purpose of revealing the supposed directions of movement of enemy troops, as well as the quantitative and qualitative composition of the enemy's army.

Rear guard in the army

Rearguard is a necessary component of any army of the past. In the Middle Ages, he, like the avant-garde, was an important part of the military order of the army. To ensure effective withdrawal of troops, it is the rearguard units of the army that are used. At the direction of the command, the rear guard departs with fights to these lines, arranges ambushes and counterattacks, destroys the infrastructure: bridges, buildings, roads. An important aspect of the rearguard's actions is the consistency of its maneuvers with the movement of the main parts of the army.

Often the unexpected introduction of the rearguard forces refracted the course of the battle and led the army to victory. A classic example of the effective use of the rear parts of the regular army is the counterattack of the Dutch army in 1600, when an unexpected blow forced the Spanish army to retreat and led the troops of William of Orange to victory.

Rear guard in the fleet

In the navy, too, the notion of "rear guard" was used. This word denoted a group of ships of a squadron or fleet, which follows a certain distance from the main train. The purpose of such an end squadron was to ensure the safety of the main ships and their protection from attack from the rear. The count of the rearguard ships began with 1/3 of the depth of the military order of the squadron.

By the beginning of the Second World War, the type and technique of sea battles has changed , the rear guard has lost its significance, and in the naval forces of the modern type this type of construction is practically not used.

Portable meaning of the term

Modern Russian language is also familiar with the concept of "rear guard". The meaning of the word today is a strong, reliable rear, a support group, like-minded followers of the leader.