In a rolling mill in which at least one of paired work rolls for rolling metal strips is formed to have a small diameter and is backed up by a pair of first intermediate rolls which in turn are backed up either directly by a plurality of backup rolls or indirectly by a plurality of backup rolls through second intermediate rolls, the rolling mill of the present invention is characterized in that a bearing case containing bearings is provided to each end of the small diameter work roll and to each end of the pair of first intermediate rolls supporting the small diameter work roll so that these rolls are supported on the bearing cases through bearings, and hydraulic cylinders are provided for applying independent roll bending forces to the work roll bearing cases and the intermediate roll bearing cases.