Complex sentence: In 1769, Peter was given the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia by his father, but he first ceded the government in the Duchy and then its territory to the Russian Empire in 1795, and received in return a high appanage.
Split into simpler sentences: In 1769, Peter was given the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia by his father. He ceded the government in the Duchy and then its territory to the Russian Empire in 1795, and received in return a high appanage.