For the first time in its 150-year history, the Norwegian King's Guard will get a woman chief. Lieutenant Colonel Ingrid Marie Gjerde comes from the infantry, and she takes command of the King's Guard in the summer.
- It is a great pleasure and honour to be the leader of the King's Guard. It is a very particular unit, with its 150-year tradition of taking care of the Royal Family's security, Gjerde says.
Gjerde was also the first woman head of a Norwegian military unit abroad, when she served as chief of the Telemark Company in Bosnia in 1998.
She has also been platoon leader with the Norwegian UN force in Libanon.
