Before dawn on January 30, 1964, General Nguyen Khanh ousted the military junta led by General Duong Van Minh from the leadership of South Vietnam without firing a shot. It came less than three months after Minh's junta had themselves come to power in a bloody coup against then President Ngo Dinh Diem. The coup was bloodless and took less than a few hours—after power had been seized Minh's aide and bodyguard, Major Nguyen Van Nhung was arrested and summarily executed.