"Poor little thing, I feel sorry for her," wrote her mother's social rival, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, "for she is really quite sweet, but vain and pretty grandiose.

At one point in 1899, the 17-year-old Elena was reputedly engaged to Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria; however, this came to nothing as he fell in love with Countess Sophie Chotek.

While living in France Grand Duchess Elena became deeply involved in charity work for Russian exiles, particularly children.

Short of money due to their exile from Greece and the loss of their Russian income, Prince Nicholas and his family lived in reduced, but elegant, circumstances.

Grand Duchess Elena's fabulous jewel collection, as well as Prince Nicholas' own artwork, were their sources of income.

Grand Duchess Elena became a widow early in 1938, as Prince Nicholas suffered a heart attack and died suddenly.

Her diaries during the period of the Second World War (1941-1946), written in English, were translated into Greek and published by Ioanna Varvalouka in 2024.