freedom of movement and protecting the advance of XII Corps. One of the most remarkable missions the 2nd MCG performed was at the end of the war. On 28 April, A Troop, 42nd Squadron seized the town of Hostouň in Czechoslovakia in order to liberate Allied POWs. They discovered 300 POWs, as well as 670 horses, including the famous Lipizzaner stallions. General Patton, a cavalryman himself, ordered their rescue when he learned that the Lipizzaners would fall under Soviet control. On 12 May, four days after VE Day, "Operation Cowboy" was launched to rescue the fine horses, and all were successfully herded or ridden back to American lines. This was dramatized by Walt Disney in the 1963 movie, Miracle of the White Stallions. Cold War The Cold War began in 1945 with the ending of World War II, and the 2nd Cavalry was charged with conducting border surveillance along the Iron Curtain. In 1951, the regiment was headquartered in Nuremberg and operated out of the cities of Freising and Augsburg. In 1955, the cavalry returned to the US and were relieved by the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment. They returned to Germany in 1958, and would remain there for the next 33 years; they operated out of Nuremberg, Feucht, Bindlach, Amberg, and Bamberg. Throughout this period, the 2nd Cavalry was responsible for reconnoitering and providing border security along 731 kilometers of the Iron Curtain; 375 km along with West German-East German border, and 365 km along the West German-Czechoslovak border. In 1978, M Troop, of 3rd Squadron, was selected to represent the US in the 1979 Canadian Army Trophy (CAT), finishing 4th – the first time the US entrant had not placed last. In 1989, the Iron Curtain was lifted, and the regiment halted their border security missions on 1 March 1990. Operation Desert Storm When the Gulf War began in 1990, the regiment was ordered to move to Saudi Arabia and prepare for combat operations. By mid-December, the 2nd ACR had established itself in the VII Corps sector of the Saudi desert and began training to fight. The 210th Field Artillery Brigade, AH-64 Apache helicopters from 2-1 Aviation Battalion, and the 82nd Engineer Battalion joined the regiment to form "Dragoon Battle Group," a force of 8,500 soldiers. On 23 February 1991, the 2nd Cavalry attacked across the Saudi–Iraq border after preparatory fires, and engaged in their first combat operation in