[2] Hervé Bléjean, a vice admiral of the French Armed Forces and the first naval officer to take up this position in the European Union, was born on 11 December 1963 in Toulon.

[3][4] He continued with his military education in the Joint Service Defence College Paris in 2000 with a general staff course.

He was posted to Ministry of Defence where he served as the director of human resources; he continued as executive assistant of the head of Human Resources Policy of the Navy HQ until 2005, also commanding the frigate FS Vendémiare in 2002 and spending six months in operation Enduring Freedom in the Gulf of Aden and Gulf of Oman.

He was made Rear Admiral in 2013 and rose up to be the Deputy Commander of the French Maritime Force HQ in Toulon.

[6][7] Bléjean served as the Commander of European Union Naval Force Atlanta through which he was involved in the Gulf of Aden in the Coast of Somalia tackling maritime piracy.