English independence is a political stance advocating secession of England from the United Kingdom. Support for secession of England (the UK's largest and most populated country) has been influenced by the increasing devolution of political powers to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, where independence from the United Kingdom (and in the case of Northern Ireland, reunification with the rest of Ireland) is a prominent subject of political debate. English independence has been seen by its advocates as a way to resolve the West Lothian question in British politics: Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs in the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster being able to vote on matters affecting England, but English MPs not having the same power over equivalent issues in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as these powers are devolved to the Scottish Parliament, the Northern Ireland Assembly or the Senedd (Welsh Parliament). While some minor political parties have campaigned for English independence, all major UK-wide political parties adhere to the conventional view of British unionism, and oppose changing the constitutional status of England. Scottish demands for independence, rather than English demands, are seen as the most pressing threat to British unity; Scotland voted against independence at the referendum on 18 September 2014, but the topic is still being debated. The membership of Northern Ireland in the UK is an equally controversial topic, whilst Welsh independence has also grown in support in recent years. Historical context Kingdom of England The English national identity developed over a long period of time. In the wake of the breakdown of Roman rule in Britain from the middle of the fourth century, present day England was progressively settled by Germanic groups. Collectively known as Anglo-Saxons, these were Angles and Saxons from what is now the Danish/German border area and Jutes from the Jutland peninsula. The Kingdom of England came into being in the 10th century: it spanned much of the southern two-thirds of Great Britain and a number of smaller outlying islands. The Norman conquest of Wales from 1067 to 1283 (formalised by the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284) placed Wales under English control, and Wales came under English law with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542, which disestablished the Principality of Wales. Formation of the UK In 1603, the Union of the Crowns took place when the death of Elizabeth I resulted in James VI, King of Scots, acceding to