I have just come across a book which looks very interesting and which I have just ordered:
Trafalgar 1805-2005: History, Commemoration and National Preoccupation edited by Holger Hoock.
It looks at the commemoration of Trafalgar over two centuries. 'Leading historians from Britain and France reflect on the complex notions of remembrance......which Nelson or Nelsons have had a role in national memory over the past two centuries? And who identifies with Nelson today?....' The blurb (which you can read in full on the Amazon website
www.amazon.co.uk ) says the book will be of interest to anyone interested in naval, maritime, cultural or public history.
Holger Hoock has also written a book on the complex relationship between art and politics in the 18th century, also viewable on Amazon but very expensive.