Complex sentence: The battalion departed for France in early 1940 to join the rest of the BEF and, like the 2nd Battalion, was also driven back to Dunkirk, with the 1/7th having been reduced to 15 officers and 200 other ranks.
Split into simpler sentences: The battalion departed for France in early 1940 to join the rest of the BEF. Like the 2nd Battalion, the 1/7th was also driven back to Dunkirk, with the 1/7th having been reduced to 15 officers and 200 other ranks.