Major General Rose King Biography Major General Rose Teresa King (née Willemsen) is a New Zealand Army officer who has been serving as the Chief of Army since June 2025. In 1991, King joined the army and was commissioned as a Royal New Zealand Electrical and Mechanical Engineer. She was promoted to brigadier in 2021, becoming the first woman professional officer to achieve that rank in the New Zealand Army, and she was the joint chief of managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) during New Zealand’s COVID-19 pandemic. King served as Deputy Chief of Army from December 2021 till his appointment as Chief of Army. She is the first woman to be promoted to general officer in the New Zealand Defence Force, as well as the first to be made service head.
Major General Rose King Biography
Major General Rose King joined the New Zealand Army in July 1991 and graduated from the Corps of Royal New Zealand Electrical and Mechanical Engineers in June 1992. Throughout her career, Major General King has held a variety of regimental, staff, and training positions, including Chief Instructor Tactical School, S4 2nd Land Force Group (primary staff officer logistics), Officer Commanding Support Squadron Queen Alexandra’s Mounted Rifles, and Commanding Officer of the 2nd Combat Support Battalion. As a senior officer, Major General King has held a number of positions within Defence, including Director Reserves and Youth Development, Director of Strategic Commitments, and Chief of Staff Headquarters Joint Forces New Zealand. In addition to her time with the New Zealand Defence Force, Major General King was assigned to the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment as Director of Operations, Managed Isolation, and Quarantine (MIQ) to co-lead New Zealand’s COVID MIQ response.