Despite being the designated successor of his father Manuel I, Andronikos' tenure was short due to premature death from unrecorded causes.
The major event of his reign was the definitive loss of Sinope to the Seljuk Turks under the regency of Mu'in al-Din Suleyman, also known as the Pervane, in the summer or fall of 1265.
Andronikos was the eldest son of Manuel Komnenos by his first wife, Anna Xylaloe, a Trapezuntine noblewoman.
[3] According to the chronicler Michael Panaretos, "And so, his son by lady Anna Xylaloe, the lord Andronikos II Komnenos, whom Manuel had urged and selected to take the throne, became emperor and reigned for three years.
Trebizond continued to flourish as a trading center — two merchants from Marseilles were there in 1263 and 1264 carrying a letter of introduction from Charles of Anjou, Count of Provence.