After studying at the Albertina University of Königsberg for three years, Buddenbrock enlisted in the Prussian Army and campaigned in the Netherlands in 1690.

Buddenbrock was accepted into King Frederick William I of Prussia's retinue in 1729, and was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle in 1739.

A member of the so-called "Tobacco Ministry" (Tabakskollegium), Buddenbrock was one of Frederick William's companions when the king was on his deathbed.

Before the August 1919 abolition of nobility as a legal class, titles preceded the full name when given (Graf Helmuth James von Moltke).

), can be used, but are regarded as a dependent part of the surname, and thus come after any given names (Helmuth James Graf von Moltke).