 His mother, descended from indigenous princes of the Volga Finns of Meshchera and Mordovia, died two days after his birth, whilst Elim's paternal grandmother was the Finnish beauty and philanthropist lady Aurora Stjernvall.His father died when young Elim was just 18 years old.In Saint Petersburg on 18 April 1893 he married Countess Sophia Hilarionovna Vorontsova-Dashkova (Novo Temnikovo, 9 August 1870 - Athens, 16 April 1953), by whom he had no issue.