Rycaut was sent to Smyrna in 1667 as the agent of the Levant Company where he spent 11 years. On his return to England in 1778 he became private secretary to King William III of England for two years. He was then appointed as ambassador to Hamburg. He was knighted in 1685. On March 28, 1700 he returned to London. On November 9 that same year he suffered a heart attack. Rycaut died on November 16, 1700.