Abstract: In 1841，the Yellow River flooded for eight months，and Henan and Anhui provinces suffered terribly． Facing this disaster，all segments of society responded． The Daoguang Emperor paid great attention to the situation of flooding anddisaster． The emperor ordered the Governor － general of the River Conservancy and Henan Governor to seal the breach and relieve the victims by offering grain and goods，providing them with employment (instead of outright grants)，andgranting tax exemptions． Notwithstanding the emperor's orders，the restrictions of despotic rule and divisions in public administration，led to slow and inefficient official efforts that lacked initiative and vigor． Meanwhile，the court and officials were more concerned with the potential political threat from the flood victims than the flooding itself． Thus，the measures basically focused on maintaining social stability and despotic rule． Hindered by the long － term disaster，andthe lagging regional social and economic development，gentry in the flooded area lacked the capability to participate in social affairs and did not play a noticeable part in dealing with disaster．