Rowan was born in County Antrim, fifth of the ten sons of Robert Rowan, an impoverished landowner of Scottish descent.
He went to school in Carrickfergus.
In 1797, he was commissioned an ensign in the 52nd Regiment of Foot.
 He was promoted Paymaster in 1798, lieutenant in 1799,  captain in 1803, brevet major in 1809, major in 1811, Brevet lieutenant-colonel in 1812, and finally lieutenant-colonel - all his promotions above captain were field promotions, not purchases.

Rowan saw active service during the Napoleonic Wars, in Sicily in 1806–1808, Sweden in 1808, and then in the Peninsular War, fighting at the Battles of Corunna, Ciudad Rodrigo, Badajoz, Buçaco, Fuentes d'Oñoro, the Coa and Salamanca, and serving as brigade major of the Light Brigade from 1809 and as assistant adjutant-general of the Light Division from 1811.
As regimental second-in-command, he commanded a wing of the 52nd Foot at the Battle of Waterloo, where he was wounded, and was made a Companion of the Bath (CB) for his services.
He returned to England with his regiment in 1818, and was stationed in the Midlands until 1821, when he took it to Dublin as commanding officer.
He retired from the army by sale of his commission on 26 April 1822 and may then have served as a magistrate in his native Ireland.

Rowan's eldest brother was Lieutenant-Colonel John Rowan (1778–1855), an officer in the Antrim Militia, an Irish regiment of the British Army that took a leading part in the campaign against the radical United Irishmen in June 1798, one of the decisive chapters in Irish history.
He was later High Sheriff of County Antrim (1814) and played a prominent role in northern Irish society.
Other notable brothers were Field Marshal Sir William Rowan (1789–1879), Britain's Commander-in-Chief, North America (1849), and Major James Rowan (born 1781), who was appointed Chief Police Magistrate for the Town and Territory of Gibraltar in 1830.
Rowan was born in County Antrim, fifth of the ten sons of Robert Rowan, an impoverished landowner of Scottish descent. He went to school in Carrickfergus. In 1797, he was commissioned an ensign in the 52nd Regiment of Foot.  He was promoted Paymaster in 1798, lieutenant in 1799,  captain in 1803, brevet major in 1809, major in 1811, Brevet lieutenant-colonel in 1812, and finally lieutenant-colonel - all his promotions above captain were field promotions, not purchases.
Rowan saw active service during the Napoleonic Wars, in Sicily in 1806–1808, Sweden in 1808, and then in the Peninsular War, fighting at the Battles of Corunna, Ciudad Rodrigo, Badajoz, Buçaco, Fuentes d'Oñoro, the Coa and Salamanca, and serving as brigade major of the Light Brigade from 1809 and as assistant adjutant-general of the Light Division from 1811. As regimental second-in-command, he commanded a wing of the 52nd Foot at the Battle of Waterloo, where he was wounded, and was made a Companion of the Bath (CB) for his services. He returned to England with his regiment in 1818, and was stationed in the Midlands until 1821, when he took it to Dublin as commanding officer. He retired from the army by sale of his commission on 26 April 1822 and may then have served as a magistrate in his native Ireland.
Rowan's eldest brother was Lieutenant-Colonel John Rowan (1778–1855), an officer in the Antrim Militia, an Irish regiment of the British Army that took a leading part in the campaign against the radical United Irishmen in June 1798, one of the decisive chapters in Irish history. He was later High Sheriff of County Antrim (1814) and played a prominent role in northern Irish society. Other notable brothers were Field Marshal Sir William Rowan (1789–1879), Britain's Commander-in-Chief, North America (1849), and Major James Rowan (born 1781), who was appointed Chief Police Magistrate for the Town and Territory of Gibraltar in 1830.
Charles Rowan