The third son of Henry Howard, 5th Earl of Suffolk, he was commissioned a captain in Echlin's Regiment of Dragoons on 27 February 1703.
On 2 March 1706, he married Henrietta, who was the daughter of Sir Henry Hobart, 4th Baronet and had been placed with the Suffolk family on her father's death.
Charles and Henrietta travelled to Hanover to seek favour with the Prince-Elector George, who seemed likely to succeed to the English throne.
He was not reappointed as a Groom of the Bedchamber after the death of George I in 1727; he had formally separated from his wife shortly before the end of the reign.
In 1731, he succeeded his brother Edward as Earl of Suffolk, and as Henrietta was now formally a Countess, she was appointed Mistress of the Robes.