Charles Howard, 9th Earl Of Suffolk

Charles Howard, 9th Earl of Suffolk (1685 – 28 September 1733) was an English nobleman and politician, styled Hon. Charles Howard from 1691 to 1731. The third son of

Henry Howard, 5th Earl of Suffolk Henry Howard, 5th Earl of Suffolk (18 July 1627 – 10 December 1709) was the youngest son of Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk, but inherited the title because none of his brothers left surviving sons. He married three times: *By his first w ...

, he was commissioned a captain in Echlin's Regiment of Dragoons on 27 February 1703. During that year, he sat for a few months as a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

(MP) for Carlow Borough in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fran ...

. On 2 March 1706, he married

Henrietta Henrietta may refer to: * Henrietta (given name), a feminine given name, derived from the male name Henry Places * Henrietta Island in the Arctic Ocean * Henrietta, Mauritius * Henrietta, Tasmania, a locality in Australia United States * Henrie ...

, who was the daughter of

Sir Henry Hobart, 4th Baronet Sir Henry Hobart, 4th Baronet (1657–1698) was an English Whig politician and baronet. Family Henry Hobart was the eldest son to Sir John Hobart, 3rd Baronet and his first wife Mary Hampden, daughter to John Hampden. He was knighted at Bl ...

and had been placed with the Suffolk family on her father's death. Their one son,

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

, was born in 1710. The marriage was not a happy one; Charles was a drunken and abusive husband, and neither was possessed of any great means. Charles and Henrietta travelled to

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

to seek favour with the Prince-Elector George, who seemed likely to succeed to the English throne. They were, indeed successful in securing posts at his accession as George I in 1714; Charles as Groom of the Bedchamber to the King, and Henrietta as a

Woman of the Bedchamber In the Royal Household of the United Kingdom the term Woman of the Bedchamber is used to describe a woman (usually a daughter of a peer) attending either a queen regnant or queen consort, in the role of lady-in-waiting. Historically the term 'Ge ...

to Caroline, Princess of Wales. However, this brought Henrietta into the company of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

, whose mistress she became. Charles was by no means complacent about these arrangements, and, according to Horace Walpole, his acquiescence had eventually to be bought with a pension of £1,200 p.a. He also received an appointment as Deputy Lieutenant of

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

in 1718 and a commission as Captain and Lieutenant-Colonel in the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

in 1719. 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 Earl of Suffolk is a title which has been created four times in the Peerage of England. The first creation, in tandem with the creation of the title of Earl of Norfolk, came before 1069 in favour of Ralph the Staller; but the title was forfe ...

, and as Henrietta was now formally a Countess, she was appointed

Mistress of the Robes The mistress of the robes was the senior lady in the Royal Household of the United Kingdom. Formerly responsible for the queen consort's/regnant's clothes and jewellery (as the name implies), the post had the responsibility for arranging the rota ...

. Suffolk died in 1733 and was succeeded by his son Henry. {{DEFAULTSORT:Suffolk, Charles Howard, 9th Earl Of 1685 births 1733 deaths Coldstream Guards officers Charles Charles Howard, 09th Earl of Suffolk Howard, Charles 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons officers Deputy Lieutenants of Essex Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Carlow constituencies