After Shirakawa died, his father, Toba, who had become an ex-emperor with political power, treated Emperor Sutoku coldly; consequently, Emperor Sutoku abdicated and his younger half-brother, Emperor Konoe, succeeded to the throne on April 28, 1142.
白河の死後治天の君となった父、鳥羽に疎んじられ、永治2年（1142年）4月28日、異母弟である近衛天皇に譲位する。