He was born in Sanok, Galicia, in 1853 in a noble family originally from Bohemia with a tradition of public service. From 1885 he held the position of Commissioner of the District Government in the Bielsko Starosty. In 1895 he was appointed county starosta of Cieszyn. He was awarded the Iron Cross 3rd class and the Franz Joseph I medal. He died in 1908.
       In 1905 Karl Dobrowski von Donnerschild received the title of Royal Imperial court councillor of the District Government in Opava, which meant having to leave Cieszyn. In recognition of that the Town Council passed a resolution on 23 September 1905 conferring the title of honorary citizen on him. Dobrowski von Donnerschild’s service to Cieszyn and the respect of the people of Cieszyn which he earned during his ten years in the town were cited as grounds for the award. Mayor Leonhard Demel, who submitted the proposal, emphasised that it did not represent an expression of confidence in the government.