Groups accompanying important people (8)
I believe the answer is:
retinues
'groups accompanying important people' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for retinues that I've seen before include "trains" , "Entourages, sets of attendants" , "Groups of advisers etc. accompanying an important person" , "Reunites with following groups" , "Bands of followers or attendants" .)