Born as Raden Mas Rahmat, he was the son of Amangkurat I of Mataram and Ratu Kulon, daughter of Pangeran Pekik of Surabaya.

According to the Babad Tanah Jawi, Sutikna's mother had used magic on Amangkurat II's wives to make them unable to conceive.

Amangkurat I and Rahmat themselves escaped to the west, while the palace was defended by Prince Puger as proof that not all members of the Kajoran family supported Trunajaya.

He succeeded his father, Amangkurat I, who died in Tegal after being expelled from Plered, his capital by Raden Trunajaya, a prince from Madura who captured the court in 1677.

[3] In an attempt to regain his kingdom, he made substantial concessions to the Dutch East India Company (VOC), who then went to war to reinstate him.

For the Dutch, a stable Mataram empire that was deeply indebted to them would help ensure continued trade on favorable terms.

The multi-ethnic Dutch forces, consisting of light-armed troops from Makasar and Ambon, in addition to heavily equipped European soldiers, first defeated Trunajaya in Kediri in November 1678,[4][5] and Trunajaya himself was captured in 1679 near Ngantang west of Malang,[6][7] and killed by Amangkurat II with his own hands on 2 January 1680.

The city-state of Giri Kedaton, which was a vassal of Mataram's from the time of Sultan Agung around the early to mid-17th century, had supported the Trunajaya rebellion.

Upon accession to the throne, Amangkurat II came to Kadilangu, Demak Regency, to meet Panembahan Natapraja, a wise, invulnerable, and smart elder who had soldiers who were ready to help Amangkurat I. Panembahan Natapraja, as a descendant of Sunan Kalijaga, was asked to rewrite the history of Java, as the original manuscript had been burned by rebels.

Amangkurat II also made an alliance and a treaty with the Dutch East India Company to gain weaponry support for revenge on Giri Kedaton.

In April 1680, Panembahan Natapraja made a large-scale invasion towards Giri Kedaton, supported by the Dutch East India Company.

Then, in 1681, the alliance of the Dutch and Amangkurat II forced Prince Puger, his younger half-brother, who styled himself susuhunan ing Alaga when he seized the throne, then proceeded to relinquish it after he surrendered on 28 November 1681.

Javanese chronicles depict Amangkurat II as a weak ruler who was easy to influence, while Prince Puger, his half-brother, had a deeper role in government.

Amangkurat II ascended to the throne with the help of the Dutch and ended up having to pay for war costs for as high as 2.5 million guilders.

For example, he tried to cooperate with other kingdoms such as Cirebon and Johor,[10] and the court sheltered people that were wanted by the Dutch for attacking colonial offices or disrupting shipping, such as Untung Surapati.

[13] Mainly due to this incident, by the end of his reign, Amangkurat II was deeply distrusted by the Dutch, but Batavia was similarly uninterested in provoking another costly war on Java.

The Dutch East India Company increased pressure on the Mataram court for the 2.5 million guilders war cost.