Ardashir II was appointed as his brother's successor to rule interimly till the latter's son Shapur III reached adulthood.

He was succeeded by Adur Narseh, who, after a brief reign which only lasted a few months, was also killed by the nobles,[3] who then proceeded to blind the second,[4] and imprison the third (Hormizd, who later managed to escape to the Roman Empire).

It is believed that during his tenure he took part in the defense of the Sasanian Empire with Shapur when it was invaded by the Roman Emperor Julian (r. 361–363).

[7] Ardashir is the last figure to be recorded as king of Adiabene, which implies that the kingdom was after his tenure transformed into a province (shahr), governed by a non-royal delegate (marzban or shahrab) of the Sasanian shah.

[12] Ardashir responded by sending an army into Armenia, but Manuel defeated the invaders and killed their commander, Gumand Shapuh.

[13] Ardashir was soon deposed or killed by the nobility, due to his continuation of Shapur II's policy of restricting the authority of power-hungry nobles.

[7] The fallen figure is most likely supposed to represent the Roman emperor Julian, who invaded Iran in 363 and was killed west of the Sasanian capital of Ctesiphon.

[7] He is wearing a crown embellished with twelve rays of the sun, whilst holding a raised barsom, thus sanctifying the investiture.