Ahistorian would most likely interpret the rhetoric in the passage as evidence that rulers of imperial states in the period circa 1450–1750 continued to

The bystander effect  for some reason my history teacher was talking about this 

Answerit was located on high ground above the river

Yep this is right you

This is called visual imagery. it is a memorization technique wherein an idea or a term is associated with an image, this in remembering ideas, especially as humans are very visual learners. this is also why visual aids a lot for memory retention.