Peter Cosgrove was named as Australia's new governor general in January this year and will today be sworn in.
Born in Sydney, Mr Cosgrove graduated from the Royal Military College, Duntroon, in 1968.
He was a commander in the 1999 East Timor peacekeeping mission and returned to Australian in 2000.
He was named Australian of the Year in 2001and served as defence force chief from 2002 to 2005.
He retired from the military in 2005 and has since worked on the board for Qantas, as chairman of the South Australian Defence Industry Development Board and as a consultant for Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
General Cosgrove worked extensively on rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of Cyclone Larry, which devastated northern Queensland.
In 2008, a Townsville suburb was named after him in recognition of his work.
General Cosgrove married his wife Lynne in the 1970s and the couple have three sons.
His son Philip, who is also a soldier, was wounded in Iraq in 2005 after a car bomb exploded outside the Australian Embassy.
Following the incident, General Cosgrove told ABC Radio: "He received some minor injuries but they were not too bad - others were more seriously injured than him.
"He was lucky, but I knew fairly quickly and I was able to reassure his mum that he was fine."
General Cosgrove will succeed Quentin Bryce as the 26th governor general.
