為慶祝英國喬治五世（George V 1865-1936）加冕典禮，中國政府在1911年4月派出海軍主力戰艦海析出訪。這一次行動不僅是為了為鞏固中英之間的邦誼，同時透國國際海上閱兵展現中國海軍實力。在訪英行程結束後，海圻艦奉命轉往美國東岸與古巴進行訪問。由於1911年5月中，墨西哥發生革命黨人殺害托雷翁（Torreon）當地2百多名華人之悲劇，因此學者研究多認為海圻艦訪美之目的在於實踐炮艦外交，迫使墨西哥退讓。實際上，透過外交檔案與當時參與航行的海軍軍官回憶，本研究認為此一說法並無根據。炮艦護僑並非海圻艦訪問美洲之主要目的。在中國海軍實施改革以後，依照國際海軍傳統與當時中國外交策略，敦睦與交際，展現海軍近代化成果，才是中國海軍訪問英、美以及古巴的重點。儘管，海圻未能參與辛亥革命，而且直到1912年6月才返回中國，但它對提高美國與國際社會對中國的重視，間接提高海外華人社會地位的確有所貢獻。

In 1911, to celebrate the coronation of King George V, the Chinese war cruiser Hai Chi sailed from Shanghai on April 20^th, and appeared at the Coronation Fleet review from June 20^th to June 28^th. After the Review, Hai Chi was instructed to visit New York and Cuba, and became the first Chinese warship that entered American waters. From New York, Hai Chi visited several other American ports, then went on to Cuba. In recent years, some research on Hai Chi’s mission during 1911 emphasizes aspects of gunboat diplomacy. The purpose of this paper is to show that there is no evidence to suggest that Hai Chi had tried to use any force or displayed gunboat diplomacy against Mexico. Rather, Hai Chi's terminal mission was to make international relationships with Britain, United States, Cuba, and other countries.