John III the Terrible (Romanian: Ioan cel Cumplit), also John III the Brave (Romanian: Ioan cel Viteaz) or John III the Armenian (Romanian: Ioan Armeanul) (1521–1574) was Voivode of Moldavia between February 1572 and June 1574.
He was the grandson of Stephen the Great and the son of Bogdan III and his Armenian mistress Serpega. It is said he spent part of his life being a merchant in Constantinople, where he had closely studied the Ottomans and their weaknesses.
Ioan was one of the last medieval Romanian rulers to battle the Turks. His short reign was marked by fierce combat against the Ottoman Empire and their Crimean Tatar allies. In order to counter the power of the Ottomans, he allied himself with the Ukrainian Cossacks. He was victorious at Brăila, Tighina and Cetatea Alba. When an army of 150,000 Turks was sent against him, he personally surrendered, being promised that his Moldavian soldiers and Cossack allies would be spared in exchange for his capture. He was killed by the Ottomans by tying his body to four camels, driven in different directions. His soldiers were nonetheless, slaughtered mercilessly.
| Preceded by Bogdan Lăpuşneanu |
Ruler of Moldavia 1572–1574 |
Succeeded by Petru Şchiopul |