The fifth king of the 6th Dynasty, the son of Pepi I and Ankhnesmerire the younger. After the premature death of his half-brother Merenre, Pepi succeeded to the throne at a very young age and, according to ancient sources, ruled for 94 years. At first his mother acted as regent, together with his uncle Djau. A letter from the young king, preserved in the wall inscriptions in the tomb of Harkhuf, governor of Aswan, reveals his excitement about a pygmy that Harkhuf was bringing with him from Sudan. We are able to deduce from this that Egypt was active in the south at this time. As time progressed, however, trade with Nubia became increasingly difficult and various expedition leaders were killed by hostile tribes.
The Old Kingdom began to fall apart during the reign of Pepi II, but only after his death, thanks to the struggles for his throne, did this become a fact. He is buried at Saqqara, just like his father. A large part of the tomb decoration turns out to have been copied from the tomb of Sahure (5th Dynasty) at Abu Sir. His half-sister Neith appears to have been the mother of his successor.