Abstract: Together with Ming Taitu’s abolition of the Secretariat(1380), the establishment of the grand council in the Yongzheng era might be regarder as major political event in Late Imperial China. Former researchers have above all put forth the North-Weatern military campaign of the Yongzheng emperor as main reason for the establishment of the Grand Council. From a somechow different perspective, this article tries, by means of a thorough analysis in which the evolution of the memorial system and the emperor’s secret memorials is given its due account, to throw new light on the origins of the Grand Council and on the reasons that led to its establishment.