Presented in this paper is a three-dimensional plastic limit analysis method of bearing capacity of the deeply-embedded large-diameter cylindrical structure in the cross-anisotropic soft ground. The most likely failure mechanism is assumed to be of a composite rupture surface which is composed of an individual wedge in the passive zone or two wedges in both active and passive zones near the mudline, depending on the separation or bonding state at the interface between the cylindrical structure and neighboring soils in the active wedge, and a truncated spherical slip surface at the base of the cylinder when the structure tends to overturn around a point located on the symmetry axis of the structure. The cylindrical structure and soil interaction system under consideration is also numerically analyzed by the finite element method by virtue of the general-purpose FEM software ABAQUS, in which the soil is assumed to obey tie Hill’s criterion of yield. Both the failure mechanism assumed and the plastic limit analysis predictions are validated by numerical computations based on FEM. For the K_0-consolidated ground of clays typically with anisotropic undrained strength property, it is indicated through a parametric study that limit analysis without consideration of anisotropy of soil overestimates the lateral ultimate bearing capacity of a deeply-embedded cylindrical structure in soft ground in a certain condition. Presented in this paper is a three-dimensional plastic limit analysis method of bearing capacity of the deeply-embedded large-diameter cylindrical structure in the cross-anisotropic soft ground. The most likely failure mechanism is assumed to be a composite rupture surface which is composed of an individual wedge in the passive zone or two wedges in both active and passive zones near the mudline, depending on the separation or bonding state at the interface between the cylindrical structure and the adjacent soils in the active wedge, and a truncated spherical slip surface at the base of the cylinder when the structure to overturn around a point located on the symmetry axis of the structure. The cylindrical structure and soil interaction system under consideration is also numerically analyzed by the finite element method by virtue of the general-purpose FEM software ABAQUS, in which the soil is assumed to obey tie Hill’s criterion of yield. Both the failure mechanism assumed and the plastic limit analysis predictions are validated by numerical computations based on FEM. For the K_0-consolidated ground of clays typically with anisotropic undrained strength property, it is indicated by a parametric study that limit analysis without consideration of anisotropy of soil overestimates the lateral ultimate bearing capacity of a deeply-embedded cylindrical structure in soft ground in a certain condition.