Charles Howard was a gentleman at the court of Henry VIII of England

Henry VIII of England

Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...

. He was the second son of Lord Edmund Howard

Lord Edmund Howard

Lord Edmund Howard was the third son of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk and first wife Elizabeth Tilney. His sister, Elizabeth, was the mother of Henry VIII's second Queen, Anne Boleyn, and he was the father of the King's fifth Queen, Katherine Howard.-Biography:Howard was born about 1478...

 and the elder brother of Sir George Howard

Sir George Howard (courtier)

Sir George Howard was an English courtier, politician, author and diplomat. He was a younger brother of King Henry VIII's fifth Queen, Katherine Howard. Howard held offices at court under four monarchs, namely Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I, most notably Master of the Armoury, and...

. As a scion of the mighty Howard family, his uncle, Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk

Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk

Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was a prominent Tudor politician. He was uncle to Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, two of the wives of King Henry VIII, and played a major role in the machinations behind these marriages...

 was able to find him a position at court. Charles' fortunes improved in 1540, when his sister, Catherine Howard

Catherine Howard

Catherine Howard , also spelled Katherine, Katheryn or Kathryn, was the fifth wife of Henry VIII of England, and sometimes known by his reference to her as his "rose without a thorn"....

 became the King's fifth wife

Wives of Henry VIII

The wives of Henry VIII were the six queens consort married to Henry VIII of England between 1509 and 1547. The six women to hold the title 'queens consort' of King Henry VIII were, in order:* Catherine of Aragon ,* Anne Boleyn ,...

. Charles went on to create a mesalliance

Mesalliance

A mesalliance is a marriage with a person of inferior social position....

 with the King's niece, Margaret Douglas

Margaret Douglas

Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox was the daughter of Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, and Margaret Tudor, Queen Dowager of Scotland...

, the daughter of Henry's sister, Margaret Tudor

Margaret Tudor

Margaret Tudor was the elder of the two surviving daughters of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York, and the elder sister of Henry VIII. In 1503, she married James IV, King of Scots. James died in 1513, and their son became King James V. She married secondly Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of...

, queen dowager of Scotland.