Yeah this is just how some of us have chosen to use our web browsers. It may not be optimal or entirely logical, but it's very convenient. Also, part of what a browser tab preserves is state, not just location (URL). If it was just location, then that's what bookmarks are for. For example, let's say I'm reading a long PDF in a browser tab. I want it to stay at my last reading location so I can continue at a later date.Used to drive me nuts but once I went to 32GB RAM, not nuts. Occasionally I do need to restart Chrome, only once in a long while. Doesn't take me long to get tons of pages and megatons of tabs open. Bad habits, mostly. I have a lot of interests, can get off on tangents. I usually have Brave open as well as Chrome for those sites that bug the Bejesus out of you one way or another.
Every time I reboot, I'm asked to upgrade to Windows 11 from 10. I decline every time. Don't know what I'll do when support disappears. I do need to reinstall Windows. Don't know which version I ought to go with. Both my Windows 10 laptops have issues I figure will probably clear with a fresh install, different issues which developed way after I bought them, almost identical laptops.
Unless I'm looking at the wrong thing, Chromium's "history by group" is entirely different. Attached a screenshot of what it looks like in desktop browser: totally useless for me.
Check or delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer - Google Chrome Help
Websites you’ve visited are recorded in your browsing history. You can check or delete your browsing history, and find related searches in Chrome. You can also resume browsing sessions on other device
support.google.com
As for Windows 11, I don't think you really have a choice. It's a "bad idea" to use an unsupported OS so after Win10 is EOL, you'll need to switch to something else. You will be able to pay for 1-3 years extended support, but this should be viewed as a temporary reprieve at best (the first year might be cheap, but then the cost goes up). They haven't announced consumer prices yet, so this is somewhat speculative.