Summary

Garp and Sengoku were powerful Admirals parallel to Roger and Whitebeard.
Zephyr, a canon character from a non-canon movie, trained future Admirals.
Kong is a mystery in One Piece who was once the Fleet Admiral and is now the Commander-in-Chief.

Ever since the start of the One Piece story, the Admirals have been portrayed as the ultimate military force of the Marines and narratively stand as the World Government's answer to the Emperors of the Sea. Although there is some nuance here, it's clear to see that the Admirals are the most powerful and important figures within the Navy, to the point where they will be the World Government's greatest assets in the Final War.

Keeping this in mind, the story has implied that they have fit this niche for many decades since the status quo of the world has remained the same for 800 years. As such, there were also notably powerful Admirals during Roger's time, some of whom are considered to be the strongest Marines in history, so let's take a look at the previous generation of One Piece's Admirals.

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By Haider Haroon Rasheed

Monkey D. Garp Is The Legendary Hero Of The Marines

An Admiral In All But Name

First Appearance	One Piece, Chapter 92, "Happiness"
Story Arc	Arlong Park

In the history of the Navy as an institution, there is perhaps no Marine who has reached the same levels of fame and reverence as Monkey D. Garp. Garp had been offered the role of Admiral, and even Fleet Admiral, dozens of times due to his incredible strength, leadership skills, and overall status within the organization, but he always turned it down due to the dislike he held for the Celestial Dragons, and being in either of those positions meant being directly answerable to them and giving up his freedom.

A promotion just means less freedom to do what I like!

Because of this, he always stayed a Vice Admiral but everyone knew that he was an Admiral in all but name, as the privileges he had within the Navy very clearly echoed this. Moreover, Garp is remembered as one of Roger's greatest and most powerful rivals, and, due to mirroring Roger in so many ways, it's clear to see that there was none more fitted to the role of Admiral during Roger's time than him.

Sengoku Would Eventually Become The Fleet Admiral Of The Navy

The Great Buddha Of The Marines

First Appearance	One Piece, Chapter 234, "Please Remember"
Story Arc	Jaya

Just as Garp had always been seen as a parallel to Roger, many in the fandom consider Sengoku to have been the Navy's answer to Whitebeard. He is one of the greatest Marines in history, both in terms of status and power since he and Garp are the only Marines confirmed to have all three Haki types as well as mastering their Advanced Forms. Along with this, Sengoku also has one of the strongest Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits in the entire setting; the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Daibutsu, which has earned him the moniker of 'Great Buddha'.

At least bring Garp or Sengoku with you! The rest of you are no fun!

During Roger's time, Sengoku was one of the Admirals of the Navy and was brought up alongside Garp. Unlike his friend, however, he was fiercely loyal to the World Government and stood by his rank the entire time, eventually getting promoted to Fleet Admiral. Sengoku was the one credited with winning the Navy the Marineford War against the forces of Whitebeard, making him one of the greatest Marines in history.

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Zephyr Was An Active Admiral Alongside Garp And Sengoku

A Canon Character From A Non-Canon Movie

First Appearance	One Piece Film: Z
Story Arc	Film Z

Zephyr is a character whom not many people know about. Even those who do typically consider him to be a non-canon character due to the events of Film: Z being placed outside the series' main storyline. However, Zephyr does exist within the canon and was one of the Navy's Admirals during the time of Roger, standing at the forefront of the organization alongside Garp and Sengoku. However, following the deaths of his wife and child, Zephyr would eventually resign from his post, though he would stay within the Navy as an instructor.

At the end, I did what I wanted. Now I have to pay the price for doing what I wanted.

It was due to his time as an instructor within the Marines that may be his greatest legacy, since he was the one who trained Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru when they were young, as well as a whole host of Vice Admirals. However, he is completely missing from the canon storyline, so there are next to no details about his time with Garp and Sengoku or his battles against Roger.

Kong Was The Fleet Admiral And One Of The Greatest Mysteries

The Now Commander-In-Chief

First Appearance	One Piece, Chapter 0, "Strong World"
Story Arc	Strong World

Kong is one of the biggest mysteries in the entire One Piece story. Many believe that he may actually be the strongest Marine out of them all due to his role as Garp and Sengoku's predecessor, and likely teacher, but this sentiment doesn't have anything to substantiate it. However, what is known is that, during Roger's time, Kong was the Fleet Admiral of the Navy, a position which has historically only been taken up by the strongest Marines.

Now that the pirate era is about to born anew, oldtimers like us shouldn't be leading the Navy.

At the current stage, Kong has become the Commander-in-Chief of the World Government, which is the highest position in the entire organization and is only below the Five Elders themselves, having so much authority that he can control even the Fleet Admiral. Naturally, most fans are convinced that Kong is a powerhouse unlike any in the series, but they can only wait until proper confirmation by Oda to see if this is the case.