Seizing the moment, then-Major General Pak Chŏng Hŭi led a bloodless military coup (called the 5.16 Revolution) on May 16, 1961, a coup largely welcomed by a general populace exhausted by political chaos. Although Chang resisted the coup efforts, President Yun sided with the junta and persuaded the United States Eighth Army and the commanders of various South Korean army units not to interfere with the new rulers.