In November 1878, Şerif led a delegation of Adjarian notables to meet Georgian writers and public figures in Tiflis on the occasion of reunion of Adjara with the rest of Georgia under the Russian rule. Şerif Bey's services were rewarded by the Russian government by granting security to his land holdings and the rank of major-general to which Şerif Bey, now known as Sherif-Beg Adzharsky, was promoted in February 1879. He was enlisted with the Caucasian Military District from 1879 to May 1891. In 1883, he converted to Orthodox Christianity and was baptized as Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Adzharsky. Sherif-Beg had 17 children. Two of his sons, Jemal-Beg (died 1924) and Temur-Beg (1860–1921) had military and political careers in Georgia and Turkey. Sherif-Beg died in St. Petersburg and was buried at his summer mansion in Mtisubani near Khikhani in Adjara. Khimshiashvili's former house in Skhalta, built in 1873, now houses his memorial museum.