she belonged to the celebrated vorontsov family that reached the pinnacle of power during the last years of the reign of empress elizabeth () - elizaveta's uncle, mikhail illarionovich, served as imperial chancellor from 1758 to 1765. her father, general (1717-1783), governed the provinces of vladimir, penza, tambov (1778-1783), and kostroma, where his name became a byword for graft and inefficiency.