Styled the Prince of Pons from birth, he was also the Count of Marsan at his father's death in November 1708.

As a member of the House of Lorraine, he was a Foreign Prince and as such, was addressed with the style of Highness.

His mother was the first wife of Jean Baptiste Colbert, Marquis of Seignelay and as such, Charles Louis had four half siblings.

The Prince of Pons pursued a military career: in 1717 he was posted in Hungary.

On 3 June 1724, he was made a knight of the Order of the Holy Spirit,[1] the most prestigious decoration of the Ancien régime.