Jacques Hogard was born into a family with a strong military tradition, and served 26 years in the French Army as an airborne officer in the Foreign Legion and the Special Forces. He resigned at the end of 1999 after serving as a colonel of the French Special Forces Task Group under NATO command in Kosovo. He wrote a book about his experiences, entitled Europe Died in Pristina. He transitioned out of the military by creating and managing a strategic intelligence firm.