Who is Shamrock Figarland in One Piece? Explained

The final saga of One Piece introduced fans to the Holy Knights, a group of elite warriors who play a prominent role in the World Government’s pecking order. The Holy Knights were first shown in the form of darkened silhouettes, and what shocked fans the most was that one of these figures resembled “Red Hair” Shanks in every possible way— including a sword seemingly identical to Shanks’ Gryphon.

As the mentor and role model that inspired Monkey D. Luffy to begin his pirate adventure, Shanks is a true icon of One Piece. He also stands out for both his power and charisma. That said, the “Red Hair” has always had an enigmatic relationship with the World Government, partly due to the rumors that he has a Celestial Dragon heritage as the alleged son of Saint Figarland Garling.

The long-time leader of the Holy Knights, Saint Garling recently joined the Five Elders as the replacement for Saint Jaygarcia Saturn. One Piece chapter 1137 has just revealed that the aforementioned Shanks look-alike is Saint Figarland Shamrock, the son of Garling, as well as the new leader of the Holy Knights in place of his father. Shamrock may very well be the twin brother of Shanks, bringing this intriguing theory full circle.

Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers from the One Piece manga up to chapter 1137.

One Piece chapter 1137 teases Figarland Shamrock as the evil twin brother of Shanks

Shamrock, the son of Garling

Shamrock and Gunko arrive on Elbaph (Image via Shueisha)

In the recent One Piece chapters, two Holy Knights— a girl named Gunko and a man who looks like the spitting image of “Red Hair” Shanks— arrived on Elbaph, tasked with the mission to ensure that the island becomes a country affiliated with the World Government. The two were particularly interested in Loki, the most powerful Giant of Elbaph, who had been imprisoned for his alleged evil deeds.

The two Holy Knights tried to recruit Loki into their ranks, but the “Accursed Prince” flatly refused. This angered both Gunko and her partner, who decided to contact Mary Geoise to communicate about a change of plans. In the same issue, One Piece chapter 1137 revealed the Shanks-looking Holy Knight to be Saint Figarland Shamrock, the son of Saint Figarland Garling.

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It was also revealed that Shamrock is the current Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights, implying that he became the new leader of the group after his father was promoted to join the Five Elders. In addition to disclosing this important information, the chapter also revealed Shamrock’s full appearance.

Shamrock looks exactly like Shanks, but without the missing arm and scarred left eye, and with longer hair. Unlike Shanks, Shamrock wears a high-rank military uniform. However, he carries a sabre-like sword that bears a striking resemblance to Shanks’ sword, Gryphon.

Shanks and Shamrock

The mysterious silhouette of the Shanks-looking Holy Knight and the subsequent appearance of a hooded member of the organization, along with the introduction of Figarland Garling and the rumors about Shanks’ Celestial Dragon heritage, prompted fans to embrace a variety of theories. Some speculated that Shanks might be leading a double life, while others theorized that there were “two Shanks”— Shanks and his twin brother or clone.

These assumptions were also triggered by the unexpected scene in which the Five Elders granted Shanks a private audience in the Pangaea Castle. However, such a thing should be out of the question for an outlaw like the “Red Hair”. Yet, in One Piece chapter 907, a hooded Shanks appeared to talk with the Elders about “a certain pirate.”

The mysterious meeting in One Piece chapter 907 (Image via Shueisha)

Fans assumed that Shanks was granted a private audience due to being a former member of the Figarland Family, but it’s now clear that although the person who met with the Five Elders looked like Shanks, it wasn’t the “Red Hair” but his look-alike, Shamrock, the son of Garling.

The current leader of the Holy Knights, Shamrock, was probably just an ordinary member of the organization at the time of his conversation with the Elders.

In the recent One Piece chapters, the Holy Knights have been shown wearing a full-body hooded dark cloak, which is the same clothing worn by the person who met the Five Elders in the Pangaea Castle. This person also spoke in a formal manner, unlike the casual and informal Shanks, further implying that it was Shamrock and not the captain of the Red Hair Pirates.

"Shanks" meeting the Five Elders (Image via Shueisha)

One Piece author Eiichiro Oda regularly showed the scar on the left side of Shanks’ face even when he depicted Shanks from his right side. However, the “Shanks” who met the Five Elders was depicted with a close-up of the right half of his face, and yet no trace of the large scar present on his left eye was visible.

The lack of Shanks’ distinguishing features was likely a hint on Oda’s part, and the fact that the Shanks-looking Holy Knight who came to Elbaph was drawn in the same way and from the same side— not showing the scar, but not explicitly showing its absence either— was another ploy that the mangaka used to keep things ambiguous until the full reveal of Shamrock.

The mysterious Figarland Family

Saint Figarland Garling in the One Piece anime (Image via Toei Animation)

One Piece has just confirmed the identity of Shamrock, and based on current information Shanks may be his brother, which would make him Garling’s son. As influential and important as he is, Shanks remains an enigmatic character, whose background and true intentions are largely unknown.

In One Piece Film: Red, the Five Elders connected Uta to the Figarland Family based on the fact that she was known to be the Shanks’ daughter, a logic that would only make sense if, according to their knowledge— which is presumably quite significant— Shanks is a Figarland too. While the canonicity of the movie as a whole is up for debate, such a major detail wouldn’t have been included if Eiichiro Oda himself hadn’t approved it.

It’s not too farfetched to think that Shanks was born as one of Garling’s sons, which would have made him a Celestial Dragon of the Figarland Family, had things not taken a turn that One Piece has yet to reveal. Shanks’ parents were never revealed, but it was shown that he was found and adopted by the Roger Pirates in God Valley when he was just a one-year-old infant.

Both Garling and Shanks are powerful swordsmen (Image via Toei Animation)

Shanks is a 39-year-old man now, and the God Valley Incident happened exactly 38 years before One Piece’s present narration. Interestingly enough, Roger, Rayleigh, and the others found the baby inside a treasure chest right after the God Valley Incident, an event in which Saint Figarland Garling was present and deeply involved in.

Considering the striking similarity between Shanks and Garling’s confirmed son Shamrock, as well as the matching ages and time frames, it seems implicitly confirmed that Shanks is the lost son of Garling.

When the Roger Pirates found Shanks, the baby’s clothes were decorated with a pattern of moon, sun, and stars. It’s safe to say that this pattern subtly foreshadowed Shanks’ kinship ties with Figarland Garling.

A subtle foreshadowing (Image via Shueisha)

In the present day, Garling appears as an old man with pointed hair and a beard that, when viewed from the side— as in the panel that introduced him as the Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights— form a kind of crescent moon.

As it’s well known, Shanks ended up stealing the Human-Human Fruit Model: Nika from the World Government that Garling serves, a Devil Fruit that allows the user to gain the dreamlike powers of the fabled “Sun God”. When Garling was allowed to join the Five Elders— who are also known as “Five Elder Stars”— his face was framed from the front, with his hair and beard forming a star instead.

Oda's potential inspiration for Shamrock, Shanks, and Garling

Loki as seen in the One Piece manga (Image via Shueisha)

To date, One Piece has not yet officially confirmed that Shanks is Garling’s son and therefore Shamrock’s brother, but the chances are high, given the multiple and evident clues that are pointing in that direction. Granted, compared to the ruthless and cold-blooded Shamrock and Garling, Shanks seems to be on the opposite spectrum.

Notably, Shanks was proclaimed a Yonko six years before the present One Piece narration. It was also revealed that the “Red Hair” captured Loki to stop him from wreaking havoc just about six years ago. While this may suggest that Shanks rose to fame as a Yonko for his victory over Loki, it creates a major narrative connection between Loki and Shanks.

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Loki has claimed that he will be the one to end the current world. It’s a well-known fact that Oda created Elbaph taking inspiration from Viking Age Scandinavia and Norse mythology, in which there is a legend called the Ragnarok— a mythical series of battles and events that would lead to the destruction of the world.

According to Norse mythology, the Fenrir— a monstrous wolf that draws power from the full moon— plays a pivotal role during the Ragnarok. This is an incredible coincidence as Garling’s character is moon-themed, while Shanks and Shamrock both have an evident connection to Loki and Elbaph, and thus to Norse mythology, in which the Fenrir has two sons called Hati and Skoll.

Shanks in Elbaph (Image via Toei Animation)

As per the myths, Hati chases the moon, while Skoll chases the sun. Perhaps, Oda drew inspiration from this Norse legend to outline the different characters of Shamrock and Shanks.

Shamrock would be parallel to Hati, chasing the moon in the sense that he follows the wicked beliefs of the moon-themed Garling, while Shanks would be parallel to Skoll, chasing the sun in the sense that he mentored— and apparently continues to support— Luffy, the second coming of the “Sun God”.

If these narrative parallels are accurate, Shanks is bound to clash with Shamrock and Garling sooner or later. The fact that Shamrock is about to stir up trouble on Elbaph, the land to which Shanks has strong ties, only adds more fuel to this theory, especially as Shanks, Garling, and Shamrock have all been implied to be prominent protagonists of the thrilling final saga of One Piece.