A white man who lived among the Cheyennes, Bent advised Black Kettle to avoid conflict with U.S. troops by keeping his people from retaliating against white settlers, and he helped Black Kettle and members of the Arapaho tribe negotiate with the U.S. government. Bent married a Cheyenne woman, Yellow Woman, with whom he had two sons, Charlie and George, who later became involved in diplomacy on behalf of Native American tribes.