Abstract: The paper aims at investigating the effects of the rotary inertia in the elastoplastic seismic response and the spatial distributions of a yield storey for a high-rise framed structure. The shear-bending lollipop model with an axial force is used in this paper. A numerical method is presented for the elastoplastic analysis of the high-rise framed structure with the rotary inertia being considered. The maximum values of the inter-storey shear force obtained from considering the rotary inertia are compared with those without considering the rotary inertia of the structure. The spatial distributions of the yield storey are discussed for different plastic stiffness coefficients when the structure is subjected to horizontal and vertical seismic loads. The influences of the vertical force on the inter-storey shear force are studied. The vertical seismic load and the forces of the columns are analyzed. The numerical results demonstrate that the inter-storey shear force at the bottom of the high-rise framed structure increases when the rotary inertia is considered. The vertical seismic load and the structural dead load possess a little influence on the inter-storey shear force caused by horizontal seismic loading. The columns at the top part of the high-rise frame structure may be in the state of tension when the structure is subjected to a severe vertical seismic load.