Which Tolkien work, published in 1949, features the farmer Giles and the dragon Chrysophylax?

Farmer Giles of Ham, published in 1949, features the farmer Giles and the dragon Chrysophylax.

The humorous work follows Ægidius Ahenobarbus Julius Agricola de Ham, known more simply as Farmer Giles. After accidentally shooting a giant, Giles becomes celebrated as a hero and is eventually expected to face Chrysophylax Dives, a powerful and self-interested dragon. The story combines mock-medieval language, satire, and fairy-tale adventure.

George Allen & Unwin published Farmer Giles of Ham in 1949. Tolkien’s illustrations appeared in the first edition, and the book was presented as a light fantasy rather than as part of the main Middle-earth narrative. Its setting has a deliberately local, almost English village character.

The title is sometimes confused with Smith of Wootton Major, another short Tolkien work published later. The dragon’s name, Chrysophylax, is also easy to overlook because the title foregrounds the farmer rather than his opponent.