camp followers

Noun

camp follower (plural camp followers)

1. (historical) A civilian who follows an army, typically a family member of a soldier or someone who provides services to the soldiers, e.g. prostitution, sale of liquor, cooking and laundry.
   • But besides these incompetents, there was always a train of camp followers, —women who followed the camp, beggars, and criminals, whose number was often greater than the number of fighting soldiers.1915, Henry Smith Williams, Edward Huntington Williams, Modern Warfare, page 11
2. A person who provides services to those engaged in a particular endeavor.
   • When the camp followers are engaged in supplying genuine recreation, in ministering to intellectual and spiritual wants instead of pandering to destructive instincts, the economic as well as the moral health of the community is sound.1907 July 5, “Prosperity Among Camp Followers Not Always Proof of Profitable Mining”, in Ores and Metals, volume 16, page 251
3. One who joins a group, movement, or project without being a legitimate member; one who jumps on a bandwagon.
   • Near-synonym: fellow traveller

   Synonyms:

   fellow traveller