OTTAWA — Gen. Jennie Carignan officially took over command of the Armed Forces in a ceremony at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa on Thursday. Carignan was promoted to the rank of general during the change-of-command ceremony, after being chosen by the federal government to become Canada’s first female defence chief.

She’s no stranger to firsts. Carignan was also the first woman to command a combat unit in the Canadian military, and her career has included deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia and Syria. For the last three years, she has been the chief of professional conduct and culture, a job created as a result of the sexual misconduct scandal in 2021.