Forlorn hope

[8] The notion of a band of volunteers undertaking a near-suicidal mission to lead an advance or guard a retreat is possibly as old as warfare itself; the story of Horatius at the bridge, in Roman times, is an early example.

In the New Model Army of the English Civil War, the "forlorn hopes" could lead a storming attack, be positioned in advance of the vanguard, or be left behind to protect the rearguard.

[9] In the German mercenary armies of the Landsknecht, these troops were called the verlorene Haufen, and carried long double-handed swords, with which they had to hew their way through the massive pike formations opposing them.

[13][14] A forlorn hope may have been composed of volunteers and conscripted criminals, and were frequently led by ambitious junior officers with hopes of personal advancement: if the volunteers survived, and performed courageously, they would be expected to benefit in the form of promotions, cash gifts, and added glory to their name (a military tradition at least as old as the Roman Republic[15]).

[16] In consequence, despite the grave risks involved for all concerned, there was often serious competition for the opportunity to lead such an assault and to display conspicuous valor.

The French equivalent of the forlorn hope, called Les Enfants Perdus ('The Lost Children'), were all guaranteed promotion should they survive.