Friedrich Karl Ludwig was born in Königsberg, East Prussia. He joined the Prussian Army in 1777 upon the request of King Frederick the Great. By 1781 he was a staff officer in the Regiment von Schlieben and by 1787 he commanded a grenadier battalion based in Königsberg. He assisted in the suppression of the 1794 Kościuszko Uprising and was Governor of Kraków in 1795. He retired from Prussian service as a lieutenant general in 1797 and spent the rest of his life improving agriculture in Holstein. He died in Wellingsbüttel Manor, now part of Hamburg.

He was a recipient of the Order of the Elephant, Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, Order of the Red Eagle, and the Order of Saint Hubert.

Friedrich married Countess Friederike of Schlieben (28 February 1757 – 17 December 1827) on 9 March 1780 in Königsberg. At the time, the marriage was not looked upon favorably because the Schlieben family was not an ancient noble family. Friedrich and Friederike had three children:

Friedrich was succeeded as duke by his son, Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg.

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