As he grew up, Sarwo Edhie formed an admiration for the Japanese Army and their victories against the Allied Forces stationed in the Pacific and Asia.

[2] In 1942, when the Japanese took control of Indonesia, Sarwo Edhie went to Surabaya to enlist with the Defenders of the Motherland Army (PETA), a Japanese-run auxiliary force consisting of Indonesian soldiers.

It was his hometown compatriot, Ahmad Yani who encouraged him to continue being a soldier and invited him to join a battalion at Magelang in Central Java.

During the morning of 1 October 1965, six Army generals, including Ahmad Yani were kidnapped from their houses and taken to the Indonesian Air Force's Halim Airbase.

Whilst this kidnapping process was being executed, a group of unidentified troops occupied the National Monument (Monas), the Presidential Palace, the Republic of Indonesia Radio (RRI), and the telecommunications building.

[4] Once Sudiro left, He was visited by Brigadier General Sabur, the Commander of the Cakrabirawa (Presidential Guard), of which G30S member Lieutenant Colonel Untung belonged.

At 11 AM that day, He arrived at the Kostrad headquarters and received orders to retake the RRI and Telecommunication buildings at 6 PM (The deadline by which the unidentified troops were expected to surrender).

By then, the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI) had been accused as the culprits of the G30S, and anti-Communist sentiments had built up sufficiently to gain momentum.

[8] Finally, in 1989, before his death, Sarwo Edhie admitted to the People's Representative Council (DPR) members that 3 million[9] were killed in the bloodbath.

On the morning of 11 March 1966, during a Cabinet meeting in which Suharto was absent, He and his troops surrounded the Presidential Palace without any identification.

In Sumatra, Sarwo Edhie further weakened Sukarno's powers by banning his Indonesian National Party (PNI) throughout the island.

[12] Together with Kemal Idris and Kodam VI/Siliwangi Commander Hartono Rekso Dharsono, Sarwo Edhie wanted political parties to be dismantled and replaced with non-ideological groups that emphasized development and modernization.

As the years went on, Suharto began to exclude supporters like Sarwo Edhie from the running of Indonesia, preferring instead to take the advice of colleagues who had gone up the ranks with him such as Ali Murtopo.

He then served as ABRI Academy (AKABRI) Governor (1970–1973), Indonesian Ambassador to South Korea (1973–1978), and Inspector General of the Department of Foreign Affairs (1978–1983).

When Suharto established Pancasila as the National Ideology in 1984, Sarwo Edhie was put in charge of the indoctrination process by being appointed Chairman of the Supervisory Body for Implementation of Guidance for Comprehension and Practice of Pancasila (BP-7) He was elected to the People's Representative Council (DPR) in 1987 and resigned his position in 1988 in protest of Sudharmono's nomination to the Vice Presidency.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is his son-in-law, who was married to his daughter Kristiani ''Ani'' Herrawati until her death in June 2019.