Complex sentence: He joined the Coldstream Guards in 1872, transferred to the 5th Lancers, 1874, and retired 1878; late Colonel commanding 3rd Battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.
Split into simpler sentences: He joined the Coldstream Guards in 1872, transferred to the 5th Lancers in 1874, and retired in 1878. Later he was Colonel commanding the 3rd Battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.