在清朝的咸豐時期，任閩江總督的左宗棠，上奏朝廷，提出要抵禦外來侵略，必須建立一支新式的海軍，要建立海軍就得自己造船，培養自己的造船和海軍人才。在左宗棠、沈葆楨等一批官員主持下，清政府開始在具有獨特地理優勢的福州馬尾設廠造船，興辦船政學堂，使之成爲中國近代海軍的發祥地。作爲洋務運動的實務之一，福州船政的馬尾船廠是當時中國唯一的海軍船廠，也是當時遠東地區最大的造船廠。

During the Xianfeng period of the Qing Dynasty, Zuo Zongtang, the governor of the Yijiang River, played the imperial court and proposed to resist foreign aggression. He must establish a new type of navy. To build a navy, he must build his own ship and cultivate his own shipbuilding and naval talents. Under the auspices of a group of officials, such as Zuo Zongtang and Shen Yu, the Qing government began to build a ship in Fuzhou Mawei with unique geographical advantages, and set up a ship administration school, making it the birthplace of China's modern navy. As one of the practices of the Westernization Movement, the Mawei Shipyard of Fuzhou Shipyard was the only naval shipyard in China at that time and the largest shipyard in the Far East.

在洋務運動時提出開辦船政,當時聘請具有科學技術、熟悉船政制造和教學事務的法國人來當正監督和副監督，並和這兩位法國人簽訂了保約。保約中規定，在五年之內，教會我國學員的造船技術，使他們能夠自己獨立設計建造船隻。

In the Westernization Movement, the ship administration was proposed. At that time, French people with scientific and technical knowledge, familiar with shipbuilding and teaching affairs were hired to be supervised and supervised, and the two French people signed a contract. The contract stipulates that within five years, the shipbuilding techniques of our students will be taught to enable them to design and build their own vessels.

到1873年12月，在五年期限將滿時，我國的員工已能自己設計、建造大船了。於是船政大臣沈葆楨會同福州將軍文煜、閩浙總督李鶴年聯合上奏，以洋員教導功成，請予以獎勵及遣散費。皇上爲了表彰他們，清朝政府爲他們頒發了發大清御賜金牌和大清御賜銀牌，表示鼓勵。 這就是“大清御賜金牌紀念幣”的來歷。

By December 1873, when the five-year period was full, our employees had been able to design and build their own ships. Therefore, the Minister of Shipping, Shen Yu, and the Fuzhou General Wenshu and the Zhejiang-Zhejiang Governor Li Henian jointly played on the performance of the foreigners, please reward and severance. In order to commend them, the Qing government issued a gold medal for the Qing Dynasty and a silver medal for the Qing Dynasty. This is the origin of the "Da Qing Royal Gold Medal Commemorative Coin".

此件“大清御賜金牌紀念幣”由清正內務府打造，正面楷書“大清”(橫寫)“御賜金牌”(豎寫)，兩旁爲象徵皇家的神龍；背面楷書“福州”(橫寫)“船政成功”(豎寫)，兩邊爲代表祥瑞之氣的卿雲。此件爲清代最早的獎牌之一，極爲珍罕之餘，亦深具歷史意義。

This piece of "Da Qing Yu Ci Gold Medal Commemorative Coin" was created by the Qingzheng House of Government. The frontal script "Da Qing" (horizontal writing) "Yu Shi Gold Medal" (vertical), on both sides is the symbol of the royal dragon; the back of the book "Fuzhou" ( Horizontal writing) "Shipzhen success" (vertical), both sides of the cloud representing the spirit of auspicious. This piece is one of the earliest medals in the Qing Dynasty. It is extremely rare and has historical significance.